Understanding the Phenomenon of Gas Fading in Thermoplastic Elastomers in Automotive Interior Applications: Cause-Effect and Prevention

摘要

As automotive OEMs and their suppliers continue to evaluate alternative products to augment or replace color-matched flexible Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) in their vehicle interior applications, thermoplastic elastomers (TPE/TPV) can provide a suitable material solution to fulfill the performance needs in this area. TPE/TPV can be effectively stabilized against degradation due to exposure to UV, heat, and shear during compounding, subsequent fabrication, and in the end-use environment. Under certain environmental conditions that may be present during inventory storage of component parts, material discoloration can occur. In this paper, we will explore the cause and effect nature of this discoloration, and review current technology to eliminate this phenomenon with respect to proper stabilization of olefinic-based TPE/TPV. The development of a proper test method to assess gas fade resistance will be reviewed.