plastics - The customer magazine from BASF 2/2007

Markets and products
A graduate from the school of hard knocks
New BASF high-performance plastic for versatile special applications
The best thing about one’s own
bathroom is still the hot water
that keeps flowing out of the
faucet. Over its long voyage from
the water-treatment plant all the way
to the tub, this water will soon also
have to pass by BASF or, to put it
more precisely, through pipe connectors
and valves made of Ultrason P,
that hold the maze of pipes together
behind the bathroom walls.
Plumbing fixtures made of this new highperformance
plastic, BASF’s first polyphenyl
sulfone (PPSU), are not only resistant
to high temperatures and algae but they
also resist breaking at notched or defective
places, even when they are hit with a
great deal of force. And they have to be
able to withstand such an attack since
plumbers like to test the quality of flanges,
connecting pieces and pipe junctions
by screwing such parts into a vice and
then giving them a couple of hard knocks
with a hammer. This is the unofficial test
to check the fundamental suitability of
plumbing fixtures made of plastic, for
which 40-year warranties are not usual.
Impervious to
hot steam
However, it is not only in the realm of
plumbing fixtures that Ultrason P has stood
up to such onslaughts. Owing to its high
heat resistance, it can be sterilized with
hot steam considerably better than other
plastics of this class. Even the combination
of stringent cleansers or disinfectants and
high heat does not bother Ultrason P. This
material can easily withstand up to 2000
hot-steam cycles. Moreover, fire-resistance
is also among its plus points. In aircraft
construction, special value is ascribed to
fire safety, and Ultrason P offers optimal
conditions here since it generates little heat
and releases hardly any harmful substances
in case of fire. Seat and lamp covers, ventilation
valves and overhead bins for carry-on
baggage as well as in-flight food containers
are potential applications.
Transparent parts
for milking machines
And what is good for people in the air is
also good for the cows back on earth. In
the realm of milk production in the agricultural
sector, particularly high requirements
are made in terms of sterilization
and resistance to cleansers, so that this
new specialty plastic comes in quite handy
here, also for the transparent parts of
milking systems. The approval procedures
for contact with food products and
drinking water are currently under way.
Further information:
www.ultrason.de
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