The Fascination Of Chemistry – WACKER’s Audio Magazine
Our "Fascination of Chemistry" podcast shows you how chemistry ensures perfectly functioning products in all areas of life
Category
ResetGraffiti Defense
Graffiti and stickers are a real headache for municipalities and railway operators. WACKER has now developed the first silicone-based product that protects bridges, underpasses and utility boxes from this kind of damage for a long time to come. Tests under real-life circumstances have shown that tough times are ahead for these wannabe artists.
From Stone Age to High Tech
The Lascaux Cave - this richly painted World Heritage Site - is threatened with destruction due to visitors. For display in a new museum, the cave was therefore faithfully copied by a French company and painted by artists true to the Stone Age original. ELASTOSIL® M silicone from WACKER was used to make the molds.
Expanding the Bounds of Bioplastics
Crude oil is a finite resource. This is one of the reasons why the chemical industry is looking for new raw materials. Plastics can also be manufactured from plants, for example. However, these only become attractive when additives from WACKER’s VINNEX® product range are added. Only then are the properties of bioplastics as good as those of crude-oil-based materials. Processing problems can also be solved thanks to these additives.
Marriage of Wood and Plastic
They actually don’t like each other: wood is polar, while polymers such as polypropylene are non-polar. In order to process them into a homogeneous composite, they need a matchmaker: GENIOPLAST® from WACKER. Wood plastic composites are used to make interior trim for cars, for example. And Pinuform uses them to produce durable, easy-care decking boards, among other things.
And the Stain is Gone
Fork lift trucks in the industrial warehouse, hospital beds in patient wards – these have a considerable effect on concrete floors. In addition to mechanical stress, over time the accumulating dirt also becomes a problem. WACKER now has a solution to both of these issues: the PRIMIS® SAF 9000 series, aqueous acrylate-based dispersions. They make flooring more resilient and dirt repellent and are also ideal additives to make washable wall paints.