BASF (Ludwigshafen / Germany; www.basf.com) has extended its “Ultramid” portfolio by the addition of “Ultramid A3U42G6”, a flame-retardant, glass fibre-reinforced PA grade. The light colourable material is 30% glass fibre-reinforced and said to be easy to process with reduced deposit formation and corrosivity. This means it increases the durability of plasticising units and injection moulds while helping to reduce production stoppages related to service and maintenance, BASF said. Key applications include connectors as well as thermally stressed industrial automation applications such as switchgears and contactors.

The grade meets UL 94 requirements for the V-0 flammability class at wall thicknesses of 0.4 mm and boasts a better thermal ageing resistance than other glass fibre-filled PA grades, the company said. It is particularly well suited for use at higher temperatures, thanks to an RTI for dialectic strength (UL 746B) of 140 °C at a wall thickness of 0.4 mm and at 150 °C at thicknesses starting at 0.75 mm.

The grade shows no migration effects and does not contain halogen or antimony components, BASF said, adding that it complies with the WEEE and ROHS directives. Black grades can be marked by laser, the company said.