A welding apparatus is suitable for welding polymeric materials, and particularly but not exclusively those that may be thin or brittle. A welding apparatus is provided for welding polymeric materials along a weld zone of the polymeric material. The welding apparatus has a carrier for supplying heat to the weld zone to cause melting of the polymeric material, wherein the heating element is arranged to reciprocate relative to the carrier between a retracted and an extended configuration, such that as the element moves from the retracted to the extended configuration the heating element melts and penetrates the surface of the polymeric material. The carrier also has a trailing contact surface trailing the heating element along the weld zone arranged to constrain molten polymeric material in the weld zone. The heating element is also arranged to reciprocate relative to the trailing contact surface.

A fiber-reinforced resin composite material has a longitudinal direction, and includes a first stack, a second stack, a ridge, a flat surface, and a connection. The ridge extends in the longitudinal direction. The flat surface is continuous to the ridge. The connection is where the first and second stacks are coupled. The first and second stacks are joined to each other in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction. Fibers of at least one of first fiber-reinforced resin sheets included in the first stack, fibers of at least one of second fiber-reinforced resin sheets included in the second stack, or both intersect the ridge. The connection includes the first and second fiber-reinforced resin sheets that are overlapped alternately, and includes ends of the first fiber-reinforced resin sheets, ends of the second fiber-reinforced resin sheets, or both that are shifted from each other to allow the connection to have a gradually-varied thickness.

A thermally expandable composition includes at least one epoxy-functional polymer, at least one endothermic chemical blowing agent, at least one free radical initiator, and at least one guanidine derivative. The invention is also related to a baffle and/or a reinforcement element for hollow structures including the thermally expandable composition, to a process for manufacturing the baffle and/or the reinforcement element, to use of the baffle and/or the reinforcement element for sealing, baffling, or reinforcing of a cavity or a hollow structure, and to a method for sealing, baffling and/or reinforcing a cavity or hollow structure.

A polyphenylene sulfide resin composition for automotive cooling parts contains, with respect to 100 parts by weight of a polyphenylene sulfide resin (A): 30 to 110 parts by weight of glass fibers (B); and 0.1 to 3 parts by weight of a silane compound (C) having a functional group selected from an amino group and an isocyanate group. In this polyphenylene sulfide resin composition, the PPS resin (A) has a number-average molecular weight of 7,000 to 14,000, and gives a residue amount of 0.05 to 1.0% by weight when dissolved in 20-fold amount by weight of 1-chloronaphthalene at 250° C. for 5 minutes and subsequently subjected to heat pressure filtration through a PTFE membrane filter having a pore size of 1 μm.

Disclosed is a rigid and monolithic composite under-vehicle protector containing phenolic felt and a polyurethane material applied by spraying on the phenolic felt. A production method for the under vehicle protector is also disclosed.

During a manufacturing method, a preform is arranged with a plurality of grips. The preform includes a stack of a plurality of layers of material. The grips are disposed along a periphery of the stack. The preform is formed into a shaped body. The forming includes pressing a die against the stack and gripping the stack with the grips during the pressing of the die. The gripping includes asynchronously gripping the stack with at least some of the grips.

A vehicle tailgate is made of a plastic material and includes: an inner panel, an outer panel and a first glue bead applied between the inner panel and the outer panel, such that the inner panel and the outer panel are assembled via the glue bead and an inner space is disposed between the inner panel and the outer panel. The outer panel includes: a skin with an appearance surface; a housing configured to receive an optical unit, delimited by a peripheral wall joined to the skin; and a cavity delimited by the skin, at least a portion of the peripheral wall of the housing, and walls projecting from the housing towards an inner face of the skin. At least one of the walls projecting from the housing towards the inner face of the skin does not touch the inner face of the skin, such that there is a gap between the at least one wall and the inner face of the skin. The gap is sealed by a second glue bead.

A method of bonding a first object to a second object includes the steps of: providing the first object including thermoplastic material in a solid state, providing the second object including a proximal surface, applying a mechanical pressing force and a mechanical excitation capable to liquefy the thermoplastic material until a flow portion of the thermoplastic material is flowable and penetrates into structures of the second object, and stopping the mechanical excitation and letting the thermoplastic material resolidify to yield a positive-fit connection between the first and the second object. The second object has a region of low density, wherein the protrusion penetrates the region of low density at least partly before the thermoplastic material is made flowable, and wherein the first object includes a protruding portion after the step of letting the thermoplastic material resolidify, the protruding portion at least partly penetrates the region of low density.

In a soundproof member 10 including a polyurethane foam 11 and disposed apart from an engine E on a vehicle interior side of a dash panel 50 partitioning a space into an engine room having the engine E as a sound source and a vehicle interior, the polyurethane foam 11 has a surface layer 12 on at least a part of the surface thereof, a one side surface of the polyurethane foam 11 directly facing the vehicle interior side of the dash panel 50 has at least a surface layer 12A in an open cell state or a core, and a surface layer 12B of the other side surface opposite to the one side surface is a surface layer in a closed cell state.

The present invention relates to heterophasic polypropylene compositions comprising a propylene homo- or copolymer forming a crystalline fraction as a matrix and an amorphous propylene ethylene elastomer as a soluble fraction dispersed in said matrix. The heterophasic polypropylene compositions further comprise an elastomeric ethylene/alpha-olefin random copolymer. The heterophasic polypropylene compositions have a well-balanced relation between stiffness and impact strength, low volatile and semi-volatile emissions and good processability.