Bionics in the Plastics Industry
28.05.2025
Bionics is the science that transfers natural principles to technical developments. This principle is also widely applied in the plastics and rubber industry. This is because nature offers fascinating role models when it comes to the challenges of sustainability, resource efficiency and material requirements.
Covestro Launches Automated Lab for Coatings and Adhesives
21.04.2025
Covestro is set to open a state-of-the-art automated lab in 2025 to optimize coating and adhesive formulations. With a focus on digitalization, circular materials, and customer-specific testing, the lab aims to run tens of thousands of tests annually—24/7, driven by AI and smart robotics.
Heads up! Novel Technology Redefining Holographic Windshield Displays
14.04.2025
A German-Scottish-US partnership has jointly developed technology that advances holographic transparent displays on vehicle windshields.
Global Recycling Day: The Status Quo in Plastic Recycling
05.03.2025
Waste volumes are increasing, natural resources are limited and the environment is facing major challenges. Recycling is an important part of the solution – but where do we actually stand? On Global Recycling Day, 18 March, we take a closer look at the progress, challenges, and necessary changes within the plastics industry.
Recycling and reusing ABS plastics in-house
02.10.2024
Recycling on your own doorstep sounds almost too good to be true. But it is possible, as the Hansgrohe Group in Offenburg shows. The special highlight is that Hansgrohe, in partnership with ImpulsTec GmbH, has succeeded in recycling galvanized plastics. This means that decoated ABS plastics can be recycled directly in the company.
Biopolymer coating for textiles – protective bacteria
03.05.2024
It defies wind and weather and protects us from a wide range of environmental influences: Functional clothing. Special coatings are responsible for this. Polyacrylates or polyurethanes, which are based on crude oil and therefore a finite resource, are often used for this purpose. The DITF are therefore researching alternatives from renewable sources – including polymers from bacteria.
Recycling photovoltaic modules
23.04.2024
"Don't lose it, reuse it!" is not just the exclamation of a puppy from a well-known animated children's series when he creates new objects from supposed garbage. Rather, it shows how important the topic of ‘recycling’ has become in general.
Fluoroplastics in focus
23.02.2024
The debate about fluoroplastics and their environmental impact is reaching new heights. While environmentalists are calling for a ban on PFAS (perfluorinated and polyfluorinated alkyl compounds), industry associations are warning of the far-reaching consequences for numerous areas of application. A look at the arguments and challenges.
Market launch of Impranil® CQ DLU: Innovation for more sustainable textile coatings
12.01.2024
Covestro presents Impranil® CQ DLU, a new aliphatic polyester carbonate polyether polyurethane (PU) dispersion for textile coating in which around 34 percent of the carbon contained is of plant origin. This enables a sustainable textile coating as a replacement for the popular Impranil® DLU, without compromising on quality.
From snack bag to cooling technology: The rebirth of aluminum-plastic laminates
08.11.2023
Thanks to aluminum-plastic laminates, our favorite snacks stay as crisp as we love them. But what if the shiny insides of snack bags hold much greater potential – one that goes far beyond accompanying a movie night? Passive cooling technology could benefit from upcycling these chip bags, says a research team from the University of Bayreuth.
Huafeng, Cyclone and Covestro collaborate to provide sports shoes and shorts with reduced carbon footprint
02.10.2023
Team Sonnenwagen from Germany plans to enter the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge in Australia with a solar-powered race car and is relying on sustainable equipment for which Huafeng, Cyclone and Covestro are cooperating. This equipment includes sports shoes and shorts that are made from recycled materials and offer improved environmental performance.
Covestro inaugurates new production line and launches new Desmopan®UP TPU series for Paint Protection Film in the automotive and wind sector
15.06.2023
Covestro has started up a new production line in Taiwan to to produce high performance TPU suited for Paint Protection Film (PPF) grades. The new TPU-based PPF solutions will be offered under the brand name Desmopan®UP.
Covestro expands production capacity for polycarbonate films in Thailand
20.04.2023
The company Covestro plans to further increase its global production capacity for polycarbonate (PC) specialty films by starting to build new extrusion lines at the Map Ta Phut Industrial Park in Thailand. The completion is planned by 2025 and the investment is in the higher double-digit million euro range.
The VR glove from the 3D printer
26.12.2022
In a project called "Manufhaptics", researchers at Empa, together with EPFL and ETH Zurich, want to develop a VR glove that will make virtual worlds tangible. The VR glove is to be created using a 3D printing process and will have three different actuators.
First Boeing 777 with AeroSHARK takes off on passenger flights
15.11.2022
The first Boeing operated by Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) took off on a passenger flight equipped with the new Surface technology developed jointly by Lufthansa Technik and BASF. Modified aircraft now begins validation of savings potential in daily flight operations. The fuel and emissions savings of around one percent calculated.
Shining light on why plastics turn yellow
21.10.2022
A research team has investigated whether intended nanostructures formed by UV light could be the cause of yellowing of polyethylene. The result was that chiral chemical structures form on the surfaces of polyethylene films during exposure to UV light and are a possible cause of the yellow color of old plastics. These findings could help researchers develop plastic products that last longer.
"CMF has an opportunity to really understand all those different consumers"
21.09.2022
Falza Khanani talks about the different possibilites of Color, Material and Finish design.
A new self-healing coating material
19.09.2022
A transparent protective coating material that can heal itself within 30 minutes when exposed to sunlight has been developed by a research team from the Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT).
Gorgeous plastics – circular aesthetics
14.09.2022
Few materials can compete with plastics when it comes to functional versatility, but the same can also be said for creating aesthetic expressions with plastics. At a time when they are often associated with generally negative press most consumer brands want to shy away from it is a material family. It needs to readdress the balance and play to more durable, higher-value stories.
BASF and BMW Group rely on renewable raw materials for automotive coatings
06.06.2022
The BMW Group is the first automotive manufacturer to use OEM coatings from BASF that are certified according to the biomass balance process. By using new sustainable product variants, around 40% CO2 can be avoided for clear coat and dip coating.
"The process window is very narrow and must be exactly controlled."
08.12.2021
What are the parameters that actually matter when it comes to wear protection? An interview with Anna Rottstegge, Head of Research & Development at Reifenhäuser Reiloy.
Printed polymers with active ingredient
20.07.2021
3D printing can be used to produce versatile, individual shapes. This type of extrusion process is therefore not only popular in the plastics industry – it is also suitable for medical technology applications. Only the right polymers have to be found first.