SABIC's LNP product line celebrates 70 years

The LNP product line, part of global diversified chemicals company SABIC (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) and the company’s foremost brand for engineering thermoplastics, this year celebrates 70 years of successful operation.

A pioneer in compounding technologies, the LNP product brand has a string of important technological achievements behind it. The era of reinforced thermoplastics was launched when the first fully dispersed short fiber reinforced compounds were introduced in the 1960s. In the 1980s, patented pultruded long fiber reinforced technology was added to open the age of LFRTs. Earlier, in the 1970s, the world’s first carbon fiber reinforced compounds were developed, in addition to the first statically conductive compounds. A year later EMI/RFI shielding compounds were launched and today the product line reflects important patents covering EMI/RFI shielding, in addition to several patents on wear resistance without the need for polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).

“Our focus on the LNP portfolio over the years has had a major impact on the way that high performance thermoplastics compounds have developed,” says Darpan Parikh, Global Product Management Leader, LNP, SABIC.

The LNP portfolio is now also leveraging a broad palette of SABIC polycarbonate copolymers with exceptional properties for compounding. These copolymers are designed to offer unique value compared to general purpose polycarbonate and include resin portfolios with high heat resistance (XHT & CXT), low temperature ductility (EXL), superior flow and ductility (HFD), prolonged resistance to UV exposure for outdoor applications (SLX), transparent flame retardancy at thin gage (CFR), and excellent flame, smoke and toxicity properties for mass transportation (FST).

The LNP product line provides innovative thermoplastic solutions across multiple industries. It has technologies that help address needs for light weighting in automotive, bio-compatibility in healthcare, flame retardance in electrical and electronics, and improved aesthetics in consumer products.

First introduced in 1948, the LNP portfolio now features a range of product families that include LUBRICOMP lubricated compounds, LUBRILOY lubricated compounds based on alloy technology, THERMOCOMP reinforced compounds, THERMOTUF impact modified compounds, STAT-KON electrically conductive compounds, STAT-LOY anti-static compounds, VERTON long fiber- reinforced thermoplastics (LFRTs), FARADEX EMI/RFI shielding compounds, KONDUIT thermally conductive compounds, and COLORCOMP custom-colored compounds. LNP compounds utilize over 30 base resins and more than 200 different fillers to achieve various effects.