Dec 14 2010
SABIC Innovative Plastics today announced that Leviton Manufacturing, a North American leader in electrical devices and systems, has selected Valox iQ* resin for the housing of its new Evr-Green™ electric vehicle (EV) cord set, a portable charger for EVs. Valox iQ resin – which incorporates up-cycled post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate (PET) from water bottles and offers molded-in color to avoid secondary painting – significantly enhances the environmental benefits of the Leviton charger.
Equally important, it delivers high electrical and mechanical performance and custom colorability. The Valox iQ family of post-consumer recycled (PCR) content resins is part of SABIC Innovative Plastics’ newly expanded, broad portfolio of sustainable solutions, recently launched at K 2010, that help customers develop differentiated, environmentally responsible products.
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“When we created our Evr-Green charging unit, a key requirement was using sustainable materials whenever possible,” said Michael Mattei, vice president and general manager, Leviton’s Commercial/Industrial business unit. “We wanted to be sure our charger not only facilitates adoption of electric cars, but also minimizes environmental impact. We turned to SABIC Innovative Plastics, a trusted long-term supplier, because of its leadership in sustainable materials. Valox iQ resin met all our requirements. It’s not just a proven PCR-based material, it also provides exceptional electrical, mechanical and aesthetic performance needed for this demanding consumer application. We believe the use of Valox iQ resin adds an important facet to the total environmental value of our new product line.”
The Leviton Evr-Green portable unit, operating at 110 volts, enables consumers to conveniently recharge their battery-powered EVs at home or wherever there is an available 110V / 15amp receptacle. It is compatible with all North American plug-in vehicles deployed with J1772 inlets, which is the standard set earlier this year by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE).
Sustainability Plus No-Compromise Performance
Global sustainability issues are at the core of SABIC Innovative Plastics’ business strategy, built on the company’s commitment to maximize the usefulness of valuable natural resources. Customers want solutions that help reduce their environmental footprint by cutting energy consumption during manufacturing; that help reduce the weight of their products or make them thinner; and that are more easily recycled or include recycled content. SABIC Innovative Plastics’ product portfolio, technological expertise and history of innovation enable the development of materials that can help customers tackle a wide variety of environmental issues.
Award-winning Valox iQ resin is based on polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) that uses post- consumer PET feedstock, which is upcycled via a proprietary process. Valox iQ PBT resin helps to divert waste from landfills, and provides up to a 34 to 47 percent reduction in both carbon dioxide emissions and process energy utilization per kilogram of PBT. Further, Valox iQ resin provides molded-in color capability to replace painting, which can add cost and pose an environmental hazard from volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions.
Valox iQ resin also provides key performance properties to the Leviton charger housing. To address the demands of this high-voltage device, Valox iQ resin underwent extensive Underwriters Laboratory (UL) testing, and is UL 746C f1 rated in all colors.
“Proactive work performed by our team enabled Leviton designers to take advantage of our broad molded-in color capability to create a charger housing featuring the company’s blue and green brand colors,” said Dennis VanPoppelen, electrical product marketing manager, SABIC Innovative Plastics. “At the same time, the engineering team saved time and expense by working with a material that was already UL 746C f1 rated. Further, our technical team provided expertise in tooling and process optimization for this new application. SABIC Innovative Plastics takes pride in going the extra mile to help customers streamline key processes and get their products to market faster.”
Other key properties of Valox iQ resin are high impact and toughness to withstand accidental contact with a vehicle and excellent resistance to household chemicals and ultraviolet (UV) light. This material has a strong fit in the electrical and telecommunication markets, and SABIC Innovative Plastics is seeing growing demand in the hybrid and full electric automotive and commercial transportation sectors.