Developments in glue for plastic

Within the composites sector, one industrial area which has benefited from the use of light-weight materials, is the rail sector. Whereas years ago, side panels and roof panels were made from wood and steel , GRP materials have resulted in enormous weight reduction and have transformed the production process.

Common manufacturing techniques involve the manufacture of a frame structure which consists of both compression and tensile parts, which are arranged in a triangular form. Due to the design of frame structure, it is not necessary to weld on metal sheets to take up the shear stresses, a huge cost and weight saving. There are only tensile and compressive forces in the struts. In order to enclose the frame, large outer skin elements are bonded to the supporting metal structure.

Using methacrylate bonded GRP, the welding task is removed, thus there is no subsequent straightening and filling of metal components. The bonded elements that are used to manufacture the outer skin panels, consist of a sandwich structure, thus ensuring that both good insulation and sound properties are preserved.

When applications within the rail sector arise, the leading choice for methacrylate adhesive all over Europe, are within the Scigrip range of products. Scigrip offer two adhesive systems, which find common use within the rail sector.

• Scigrip SG300, a two component adhesive with working times 5 to 40 minutes. Tensile strength of over 2000 PSI. An excellent all round high performance primerless structural adhesive with excellent peel & shear strength. Commonly used to bond materials such as such mild steel, aluminium & stainless steel, HIPS, AB , acrylic. Carbon Fibre, polyester, CPVC, vinyl  and GRP etc.
• Scigrip SG230, a two component adhesive with working times of 30 minutes to 130 minutes. Tensile strength of over 3000 PSI. A very high viscosity non sag adhesive which shows excellent gap filling properties. Excellent durability and permanent toughness and elasticity. Excellent environmental resistance. Typically used in large bonding applications such with metals, plastics and composites.

Both Scigrip SG300 and Scigrip SG230, conform to European Railway Standard EN 45545-2:2013 which defines a classification system that specifies requirements for fire behaviour of materials and products used in trains. Our Technical Services Department, are pleased to advise on all aspects of plastic and metal gluing.

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