Material

MATERIAL WORLD

Materials

CREATED FOR ALL CLAIMS

Whether moulding machine, block moulding machine or pre-expander: Erlenbach machines are designed to process a wide variety of materials, from classic “Styrofoam” to modern biopolymers.

Discover the materials our machines process and learn about the advantages of the individual particle foams.

EPS – EXPANDABLE POLYSTYRENE

WHATEVER YOU WANT

Expandable polystyrene – EPS for short – is still a real allrounder today. It was invented about 70 years ago by BASF scientist Dr. Fritz Stastny.

The chemical process of polymerisation enables polystyrene to be created from styrene. With the addition of the propellant pentane, the pearl-like expandable polystyrene expands when heated by steam to many times its original size, and this foam-like material can be formed into any kind of shape, limited only by the size of the moulding machine and the moulds fitted inside it.

Thanks to its outstanding insulation characteristics, we often find EPS in applications for the construction and packaging sectors.

EPS can be processed with various Erlenbach machines, for example with the corresponding variant of the EMMotion.

Advantages

EPS particle foam – the advantages at a glance:

flexible moulding
low thermal conductivity
food grade
100% recyclable
insulating
high energy absorption

EPP – EXPANDED POLYPROPYLENE

JUST POP IT UP

Expanded polypropylene – EPP for short – opens up many possibilities. Developed in the 1980s, this particle foam, unlike EPS, contains no propellant. The pearl-like expanded polypropylene beads are processed like EPS by using steam in a moulding machine, e.g. the EMMotion. These moulding machines differ from the machines for EPS processing by their more stable design, as a higher steam pressure is required.

Another distinction is the possibly required pressurization of the material as well as thermal post-processing treatment. You can also select between crack filling and counter-pressure filling during processing.

Products made from EPP are often used in the automotive sector, as multi-use packaging or for insulating technical components.

Advantages

EPP particle foam – the advantages at a glance:

flexible moulding
thermally stable
food grade
no odour
recyclable
insulating
good elastic recovery
colourfast
dimensionally stable surface finishing

E-TPU – EXPANDED THERMOPLASTIC POLYURETHANE

TRY SOMETHING NEW

So far expanded thermoplastic polyurethane – E-TPU for short – is mainly used in the sports and leisure sector. But the particle foam can do much more:

E-TPU combines the advantages of TPU with the properties typical of foamed materials. It can be processed in a similar way to EPP on Erlenbach’s moulding machine (EMMotion 5.0).

Due to its typical characteristics, E-TPU is generally used in the sports industry, for example, as a sole for footwear or an alternative to conventional bicycle tyres.

We are very keen to see how E-TPU will be used in the future, and we are happy to offer you the services of our Experience Center for your prototypes.

Advantages

E-TPU – the advantages at a glance:

flexible moulding
very high elasticity
high abrasion resistance
thermally stable, even when subjected to high continuous loads
exceptional elastic recovery

COPOLYMERE

THE PERFECT MATCH

Perfect combination for even more versatile results: Modern copolymers can combine the known advantages of EPS and EPP, thus offering you many additional and novel application options.

For example, polylactide (PLA) is a bioplastic whose biogenic raw materials have been chemically modified.

Depending on the raw material, certain copolymers can easily be processed on our EMMotion 1.6 or EMMotion 2.5 moulding machines and can even be pre-expanded on our EMBead.

Packaging is one area where there are some familiar uses for copolymers. Copolymer processing for the automotive sector is another recent trend.

Whichever copolymer is the right one for your applications, with the machines from Erlenbach, you can be sure of having the right equipment both now and for the future.

Advantages

Copolymers – the advantages at a glance:

flexible moulding
thermally stable
insulating
low densities easily achievable
abrasion-resistant
food grade
high impact/compressive strength
chemically stable

BIOPOLYMERE

ACT NATURALLY

The topic of environmental protection and resource conservation is playing an increasingly important role also in our industry. That's a good thing. And even better, biopolymers start right here. Biopolymers generally refer to bio-based polymers but can also mean petroleum-based polymers that are biodegradable. Biopolymers are polymers that are made up of two or more monomer units.

Some kinds of biopolymers can be easily processed with only minimal modifications to our moulding machines, thanks to the know-how of Erlenbach. While there are several well-known applications for biopolymers in the packaging sector, many other uses are feasible for these kinds of materials.

We will be happy to show you our latest processing trends for biopolymers in our Experience Center.

Advantages

BIOPOLYMERS – the advantages at a glance:

biodegradable
resource friendly
flexible moulding
insulating
food grade
high impact/compressive strength

Erlenbach GmbH
Am Roedchen 1
56355 Lautert

phone: +49 6772 801-0
servicehotline: +49 6772 801-11

info(at)erlenbach.de
www.erlenbach.com

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Whether moulding machine or block moulding machines, whether pre-expander or recycling plant: the Erlenbach fleet leaves nothing to be desired when it comes to the processing of particle foams. It goes without saying that our plants and machines are designed in such a way that modern materials such as biopolymers can also be processed with them – letting the future begin now. See for yourself.
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