PPSU replaces aluminum

Solvay Advanced Polymers' Radel R PPSU Replaces ,Aluminum in New Recyclable Airline Catering Trolley

The airline industry’s first recyclable catering trolley with a virtually all-plastic design was introduced by AeroCat B.V.

The innovative Tigris trolley, made of injection and extrusion grades of Radel R polyphenylsulfone (PPSU) resin from Solvay Advanced Polymers, LLC, weighs just 17 kg (37 lb) and is claimed to be the lightest in the industry. It boasts at least a 25% weight reduction over conventional aluminum trolleys, thus affording airlines a significant payload reduction and major fuel savings.

AeroCat, a full-service trolley manufacturer, was founded in 2006 and later formed a strategic alliance with key industry players including Solvay Advanced Polymers, Alpharetta, Ga., a maker of high-performance polymers; Bemis Manufacturing Co., Sheboygan Falls, Wis., a leading plastics processor; Brussels-based Zetes Industries, an international goods and people identification solutions provider; and gategroup, in Zurich, the leading global provider of above-the-wing services specializing in catering and hospitality, airport handling and logistics, and in-flight solutions.

- We saw a need for an all-plastic catering trolley that would offer airlines many more attractive advantages than the current offering - said Willem ten Barge, AeroCat commercial director. “Plastics opened up a range of new possibilities in terms of weight reduction, aesthetics, logistics, and a significant cost savings.
The essentially all-plastic design, except for some small parts, facilitates closed-loop recycling after the trolley’s estimated 10-year lifetime. Tests conducted by Bemis reveal that reground Radel R PPSU maintains its physical properties and can be used in a 100% recycled formulation or blended in varying amounts with virgin resin. Compared to aluminum, the low-maintenance plastic trolley also substantially reduces the carbon footprint by a factor of 2.2 over existing trolleys, according to the Dutch Scientific Institute TNO.

A highly innovative feature is the incorporation of four passive RFID tags for optimized catering logistics. Other key benefits include reduced maintenance, improved aesthetics, and better insulation properties than aluminum which translate into a highly attractive 100% return on investment in the first year. Many of the improved efficiencies also result in significantly reduced airline operation costs, according to ten Barge.

The 4-ft-long by 14-in (157-cm by 35-cm)-wide trolley features a patented construction which includes 11 injection molded parts and three novel extruded parts. The extrusions set a new standard in terms of length and wall thickness for PPSU, according to Steve Kolste, director of market and business development for Bemis. “The challenge was extruding such a large profile with a thin wall thickness, and still providing the necessary high strength and low weight,” explained Kolste.

Using standard extrusion equipment, Bemis employed unique die technology to extrude two 39-in (99-cm)-high C-shaped parts for the body of the trolley. A key challenge was distributing the material evenly along the die, according to Kolste. Here, Radel R PPSU’s consistent melt flow played an important role in part processing. The hollow, multilayer, ribbed structures are then joined together with a proprietary technology that eliminates fasteners and further reduces overall weight. The 0.5-in (1.3-cm)-thick structures are believed to be the largest thin-wall extrusions made of PPSU, according to Kolste. The trolley also includes 3-ft by 10-in (117-cm by 25-cm) injection molded parts for the front and rear doors.

Solvay Advanced Polymers’ Radel R-7700 (extrusion) and R-7535 (injection) PPSU grades comply with all FAA flame, smoke, and toxicity (FST) requirements and provide exceptional toughness and impact strength. They are resistant to aggressive cleaning agents and provide molded-in color.

The Tigris recyclable trolley, available in half-size (10 kg/22 lb) and full-size (17 kg/37 lb) versions, are undergoing industry trials in order to achieve EASA/ETSO certification. AeroCat and gategroup will sell or lease the trolleys in a total service catering concept directly to the airlines.

Solvay Advanced Polymers, LLC, produces more plastics with more performance than any other company in the world. This gives design engineers worldwide more ways to solve top design challenges in automotive, healthcare, electronics, aerospace and other demanding industries.

Solvay is an international chemical and pharmaceutical Group with headquarters in Brussels. Its companies employ more than 28,000 people in 50 countries. In 2008, its consolidated sales amounted to EUR 9.5 billion, generated by its three sectors of activity: Plastics, Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals.