APEC® XT: new product line based on polycarbonate copolymers from Covestro

Covestro introduces a new range of products based on polycarbonate copolymers at the Chinaplas trade fair. This makes plastics available that are characterized by enhanced properties and functionalities compared to standard products and are therefore suitable for an even wider range of applications in important industrial sectors. Thanks to a new production process, plastics based on polycarbonate copolymers can be launched on the market more quickly in future and produced on an industrial scale. A new plant for the production of these copolymers was commissioned at the company's Antwerp site at the end of March 2024.

The first applications for the new grades could be in the electrical and electronics industry, as well as in healthcare. Both sectors are particularly well represented in Asia. For their use in housing parts, plastics of the new Apec^® XT line must above all offer freedom of design, dimensional stability, impact as well as chemical resistance and, in some cases, good flame retardancy.

There are also promising prospects for the copolymers in telecommunications and photovoltaics, for example in antenna housings, where weather-resistant, electrically insulating, ductile and flame-retardant materials are needed.

Further product innovations based on the new copolymer technology platform could focus on the automotive industry and infrastructure, where plastics from the new series have good prospects for use in housings for residential energy storage systems, charging stations and wall boxes, for example, thanks to their good electrical insulation properties, weather resistance and flame retardancy.