AOC LLC introduced its latest technology, Firepel K120-MTA, a resin system ideal for mass transit applications. The one-part system is halogen-free and does not require antimony or aluminum trihydrate (ATH) to achieve its fire-retardant properties.
Unlike conventional low smoke resins, K120-MTA achieves its fire performance through a proprietary intumescent mechanism. As a result, K120-MTA offers excellent wet out and spray characteristics, crack resistance, and low density. This unique combination of properties produces fire-retardant and low-smoke composites that are lighter weight, stronger and easier to fabricate than those made from mineral-filled resins.
The increasing need to reduce the weight of vehicles will continue to drive the demand for composites’ use in buses, trains and other mass transit vehicles. Parts using K120-MTA have a potential weight savings of up to 30 percent compared to standard composites using antimony or ATH.
“K120-MTA is a unique product and outperforms every other resin on the market,” says Fletcher Lindberg, vice president of marketing for AOC. “It utilizes proprietary halogen-free technologies to achieve the highest fire-retardant and low-smoke characteristics possible. And because its excellent performance is achieved without ATH, K120-MTA has a much lower specific gravity, which makes it easier to process than traditional systems.”
Low Fire, Smoke and Toxicity
Firepel K120-MTA exceeds the requirements of mass transit applications in North America and demonstrates low flame spread, low smoke and excellent smoke toxicity data when tested according to:
- ASTM E162, Standard Test Method for Surface Flammability of Materials Using a Radiant Heat Energy Source,
- ASTM E662, Standard Test Method for Specific Optical Density of Smoke Generated by Solid Materials,
- SMP 800-C, Toxic Gas Generation
Firepel K120-MTA is engineered for the hand lay-up and spray-up composite manufacturing processes.
