GREAT LAKES LAUNCHES HALOGEN-FREE FLAME RETARDANT FOR POLYPROPYLENE

DÜSSELDORF, GERMANY – Great Lakes Chemical Corporation (NYSE:GLK) today announced the launch of Reogard® 2000 intumescent flame retardant, a cost efficient, halogen-free solution for polypropylene and other polymers.

Reogard 2000 flame retardant is ideally suited to applications that demand a highly efficient, halogen-free flame retardant such as extruded building parts and plastic components for electrical applications subject to the UL94-VO flammability standard. Reogard 2000 is free from “milky” water baths during extrusion and the production of ammonia odor, which can be a concern with other competitive intumescent technologies. In addition, the UL94-VO standard is achieved with Reogard 2000 at significantly lower flame retardant load levels in the polypropylene homopolymer resin than the load levels normally required for competitive systems.

Reogard 2000 also offers superior physical properties such as higher impact strength and a higher heat distortion temperature (HDT) than other intumescent flame retardants. The higher HDT means that the polymer can be removed from the mold earlier, thereby reducing the molding cycle. Delamination, when the surface layers start to separate from the polymer during molding, does not occur even at temperatures up to 210°C. In addition, because Reogard 2000 is partially melt blendable, it can be compounded at lower temperatures offering potential energy savings

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