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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Munich-based
chemical group Wacker has recently opened a global competence center
for thermal interface materials in Shanghai, China, as per the company's press
release.
The new laboratory is located at the company’s China
headquarters in Caohejing High-Tech Park. It will conduct fundamental research
in order to develop novel silicone-based thermal interface products and
solutions for the electrical vehicle market as well as for consumer electronics
and telecommunication industries.
Wacker’s new competence center in
Shanghai will conduct fundamental research and develop novel silicone-based
thermal interface materials for the fast growing electrical vehicle market, for
consumer electronics and for the telecommunication industries.
Over the
past decade, thermal interface materials (TIM) have been one of the fastest
growing segments of the materials market globally, with an average compound
annual growth rate of more than six percent. Widely used in personal computers,
consumer electronics, automotive and telecommunication industries, the demand
for silicone-based TIMs is expected to grow continuously, as power density is
rising exponentially and thermal management systems become increasingly
important.
Electronic devices and batteries generate a great deal of heat
that impacts their functionality and service life and can lead to serious
faults. Efficient thermal management is therefore increasingly essential. “For
improved thermal management of components, the industry is increasingly turning
to heat-dissipation materials”, says Christian Gimber, head of Engineering
Silicones at Wacker’s silicone division. “Our thermally conductive silicones can
be processed very efficiently, and they also meet the stringent and rising
safety and reliability requirements imposed by the electronics and automotive
industries.”
The company’s new R&D lab in Shanghai will focus on the
development of silicone-based thermal interface materials and novel
applications, Gimber emphasizes. “With the new lab installed, Wacker will
be able to significantly improve its capability of fundamental research for such
materials and come up with tailor-made products to support our customers around
the world.”
Located at WACKER’s Shanghai Center in Caohejing High-Tech
Park, the TIM competence center shares existing resources such as analytics and
the e-mobility lab of the site. Experts will conduct fundamental research aimed
at overcoming technical hurdles with regard to performance, processability and
cost-effectiveness and leverage Wacker’s proprietary technology to work on new
material designs. The facility will develop customized products and solutions
with locally available raw materials for the Chinese market, but also support
other labs in the company’s worldwide network, such as labs in Germany and
Korea, when creating new formulations.
The Chinese industry uses thermal
interface materials in a wide array of products. “In fact, China’s range of TIM
applications is quite remarkable and one of the most comprehensive in the
world”, says Paul Lindblad, President of Wacker Greater China. The new R&D
lab will leverage Wacker’s worldwide technological network and expertise to
deliver market-driven innovations. “What’s more, operating a major TIM research
facility here in China also means that our Chinese customers will be able to
benefit from a faster response time”, Lindblad says.
Thanks to their
unique properties, silicones are widely used for thermal management in the
automotive, consumer electronics and telecommunication industries. Featuring
excellent electrical insulation properties and a high degree of resistance
against hot and cold temperatures, chemicals and UV radiation, silicone-based
thermal interface materials are available as gap fillers, potting glues,
adhesives, greases and foams for smartphones, telecommunication base stations,
battery packs and power control unit modules for electric vehicles.
As
MRC reported
earlier, Wacker Chemie operates a 90 ktpa EVA compounding plant at the Ulsan
site, consisting of two lines. The second line with a capacity of 40 thousand
tons of products per year was launched in 2013.
According to MRC's
DataScope, September EVA imports to Russia fell by 30,32% year on year
to 2,38 tonnes from 3,420 tonnes a year earlier, and overall imports of this
grade of ethylene copolymer into the Russian Federation dropped in
January-September 2020 by 9,85% year on year to 26,340 tonnes (29,220 tonnes a
year earlier).
Wacker Chemie manufactures and markets EVA dispersions
under the VINNAPAS brand name. VINNAPAS polymer dispersions are used in a wide
range of industries: for the production of complex thermal insulation systems,
building and tile adhesives, plaster, building mixtures and mortars, cement
sealing slurries and nonwovens. |
