HEXPOL TPE and Polykemi collaborate to reduce carbon footprint for 2K parts

Making a material selection can be a complicated task when designing consumer products. There are many properties to balance, and the choice is even more complex when including eco-design principles. Selecting two materials for a 2K part is not doubling the difficulty; it is squared.

To help with this decision, the Swedish compounders, HEXPOL TPE AB and Polykemi AB, have collaborated on a 2K sustainable development project that reduces the product carbon footprint for consumer products.

To demonstrate the possibilities in reducing the product carbon footprint, increasing recyclability and optimizing adhesion, Polykemi’s Materialsmart meets HEXPOL TPE’s Sustainable Materials Lab to create tested solutions.

Henrik Palokangas, sustainability specialist at Polykemi, commented, “Making an informed choice is key when decarbonising and making the consequences clear is the first step on this journey”.

HEXPOL TPE and Polykemi have done substantial work in the field of sustainability, allowing them to provide cradle-to-gate Product Carbon Footprints (PCF) and calculate the Global Warming Potential (GWP) per kg of material.

Henrik Palokangas (Left), sustainability specialist at Polykemi, and Klas Dannäs, sustainability director at HEXPOL TPE.

The PCF data shows that switching from a combination using fossil-based ABS from Polykemi, overmoulded with a fossil-based TPE from HEXPOL TPE, to a recycled PP and TPE with bio-circular attributed content, can give a 77% reduction in CO2e. This combination can also bring advantages when considering end-of-life and recycling compatibility.

Combinations using mechanically recycled ABS with bio-circular attributed TPE were also tested, which gave a 57% reduction in CO2e compared to the fully fossil-based equivalents. The TPE is bio-circular attributed via the mass balance approach using 2nd generation feedstocks.

“To bring real change and deliver the needed transition of the plastics industry, we must collaborate. This project is about taking our collective know-how to enable combinations with the lowest carbon footprint and highest recyclability possible,” stated Klas Dannäs, sustainability director at HEXPOL TPE. "While also giving assurance on the materials adhesion performance and durability."