POLYMER BLENDS

Over 100,000 tons of thermopolastics blends in the stricter sense were processed in Western Europe in 1983. When including ABS - the oldest type of this group of materials - this figure even rises to over 450,000 tons. Main objectives of the development work in this sector were the extension of existing knowledge to new combinations of thermoplastics for obtaining increased property combinations and the optimation of existing blends with regard to specific applications. The use of polymer blends continues to be concentrated on the automotive sector. The expansion of established uses and the new applications being currently developed suggest that above-average growth rates and further product innovations for polymer blends can also be expected in future.