It is endowed with exceptional chemical inertia and thermal resistance at continuous temperatures of over 200°C. These properties make it an ideal matrix for engineering compounds offering unique performance levels, especially in extreme working environments that, normally off-limits for most thermoplastic resins, are usually the province of metals or thermosets.
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Hugely versatile, PPS can be used in the production of glass and carbon fibre-reinforced structural materials employed in the most diverse and extreme metal replacement applications. Furthermore, thanks to the high dimensional stability that PPS confers on moulded items, which is an effect of the particular arrangement of its macromolecules, together with its ultra-low differential shrinkage, PPS-based grades are suitable for the production of extremely precise technical products that need to respect strict geometrical tolerances, even when exposed to humidity and temperature changes.
The HVAC industry (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) is one of the best application fields for the LARTON PPS-based compounds produced by LATI. The durability and reliability of these materials – even after long periods of use – are the attributes that allow them to be used in certain applications, for example in the internal parts of gas condensing boilers.
All these are the considerations that led the technicians at the German group Wolf Gmbh to choose LARTON G/40 (40% glassfibre-reinforced PPS) as the material for the compensation ring used in the heat exchanger modules of its own-brand gas boilers. In this particular application, using PPS means having parts with excellent dimensional stability that can withstand continuous use at high temperatures, and compensate for the linear thermal expansion of the boiler metal, while at the same time insulating the rest of the boiler from the heat of the burner. Offering all this, yet without being affected by chemical aggression or thermomechanical fatigue, the PPS-based parts ensure the smooth operation of the heating system over time.
Drawing on its considerable experience, Wolf Gmbh, a world leader in heating and ventilation systems, including large ones, was able to see that the properties of LARTON G/40 provided the perfect compromise solution around which construct the heart of its domestic boilers.
LATI provided support for the design and moulding of the compensation ring which applies the finite element method through its simulation service, and was able to provide precise indications on how to manage different aspects such as mould filling, shrinkage and deformation.
