RECENT CASE STUDIES OF ENGINEERING THERMOSETS FOR

UNDER-THE-HOOD APPLICATIONS

Frank Bayerl, Sigrid ter Heide, Dr. Roman Hillermeier and Cedric Ball
Momentive Specialty Chemicals, Inc.

Abstract
The automotive industry is looking for options to reduce weight and increase engine
efficiency to comply with new CO2 emission and fuel economy regulations. Increasingly,
automakers are examining their use of materials even for the smallest components.
Engineering thermosets are an effective lightweighting alternative to heavier conventional steel
and aluminum die cast products. They combine outstanding temperature stability, long term
mechanical strength, dimensional stability and high chemical resistance.
This paper focuses on two recent projects where (BAKELITE™) phenolic-based engineering
thermosets have successfully replaced traditional metals in automotive under-the-hood
applications and outperformed engineering thermoplastics also considered for the applications.
First, a water pump housing made with engineering thermoset material is shown to have good
chemical resistance to coolants without additional corrosion protection and to maintain its
mechanical properties. Second, a vacuum pump made with engineering thermoset material has
lower overall weight, higher dimensional stability and better fatigue properties than a similar
design made from die-cast aluminum.
Finally, the paper describes the recycling options for engineering thermoset materials.

Introduction
New fuel economy and emission regulations are prompting significant changes to the way
automakers design their vehicles and the components that go into them.1 Numerous areas of
the vehicle are being redesigned to reduce weight and increase engine efficiency. In cases
where aluminum has been used as a lightweighting alternative to steel, engineers are seeking
even greater savings from glass and carbon reinforced composite materials. Thermoplastics
work in many instances. However, applications involving corrosive chemicals, high heat or
structural loads may be best suited for engineering thermosets.

Case 1: Water Pump Housing

Water pumps circulate coolant through the cooling system of internal combustion engines to
protect them from overheating. Under-the-hood temperatures reaching more than 200°C can
destroy engine parts in a short period of time if not designed with appropriate materials. Water
pumps must withstand the chemical impact of newer “long life” coolants, maintain mechanical
properties and hold critical dimensions even at high temperature.
An automotive customer sought alternative materials for a water pump design that could
maintain performance while reducing weight and cost. The incumbent material was die cast
aluminum. The following paragraphs examine the behavior of various water pump housing
materials under circumstances similar to the final application and were used as the basis for
selecting a next generation production design.

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Resistance to High Temperature
Under normal operating conditions, typical engine oil and coolant temperatures reach
120°C. Surface and ambient temperatures near the engine can easily reach 200°C for
extended periods of time requiring engineers to design with materials that maintain their
physical properties at these higher temperatures.
In Figure 1, flexural moduli were measured for PF 6510 and PF 1110 (30% glass fiber
reinforced engineering thermosets) as a function of temperature. Comparisons were made
against values for a 50% glass fiber reinforced polyphthalamide (PPA) and 40% and 60% glass
fiber reinforced polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) materials.2 The results indicated a greater
resistance of the engineering thermosets to high temperatures versus the other material
candidates.

Flexural Modulus of
30,000
Candidate Materials vs. Temperature
25,000
Flexural Modulus [MPa]

20,000 PF 1110
PF 6510
Engineering PPA
Engineering PPS 65% GF
15,000 Engineering PPS 40% GF

10,000

5,000

0
0 50 100 150 200

Temperature [ºC]
Test Method: ISO 178

Figure 1. Flexural modulus according to ISO:178 of engineering thermosets PF 1110, PF 6510 versus candidate
engineering thermoplastic materials at elevated temperatures.

Water Pump Material Dimensional Stability

Over time, long life coolants become acidic and can deteriorate water pump materials.3
Standard die cast aluminum must be post-treated to protect the component. However, this adds
cost, complexity and sometimes environmental issues with which to contend. An improved
design would not require post-treatment.
In addition to chemical resistance, dimensional stability as a function of time and
temperature is critical to water pump operation. Most pumps rely on accurate movement and
precise clearances in order to function. Materials that have high thermal expansion coefficients
can cause interferences and premature wear. Figure 2 shows the dimensional stability of
engineering thermoset PF 6510 after 1000 hours of exposure to coolant mixture at 120°C.
Width and thickness dimensions remained nearly constant for the engineering thermoset while
total mass absorption was less than 2.5%.

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 110%
Dimensional Stability of PF 6510
105% in Glysantin G30 at 120°C

Relative Dimension [%]

100%

95% 0 (h)
1500 (h)
3000 (h)

90%

85%

80%

Width Thickness Mass

Test Method: ISO 175:2011-03

Figure 2. Relative dimensions (%) of engineering thermoset PF 6510 in long life coolant at 120°C, over 1000 hours.

Creep Strain at 120°C

Creep Strain [%]

Logn time [hours]

Figure 3. Creep Strain (%) according to ISO:899 of engineering thermoset PF 6510 (72 MPa) versus engineering
thermoplastic PPA (60 MPa) and PPS (30 MPa) at 120°C, over 1000 hours.
Long-Term Creep Behavior
Water pump components that are subjected to sustained loads have a greater possibility of
failure if creep strain exceeds design limits. Internal component/gears can slip due to
dimensional changes. Housings and attachment locations can distort causing leaks, alignment
issue or noise and vibration (NVH) problems. Figure 3 shows the long-term creep behavior of
engineering thermoset PF 6510, PPA, PPS and AZ91 magnesium. Even at higher stress
loading, results indicated a superior low creep strain of the engineering thermoset versus PPA
and PPS. In fact, the measured creep of the engineering thermoset was low enough to avoid
the need for threaded inserts in the water pump housing. Assembly screws were able to be
directly fastened into threaded holes reducing the part complexity and number of required
assembly steps.
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 Case 2: Vacuum Pump Parts
A vacuum pump produces vacuum for power brakes and other devices in diesel cars. It is
consequently a critical part that must operate reliably when subject to vibration, dynamic forces
and temperature cycles generated by the engine. To fit closely enough to avoid leakage,
vacuum pump parts must meet design tolerances as low as 0.1%.
Similar to the water pump example, an automotive customer sought alternative materials for
a next generation design that could maintain performance while reducing weight and cost.

Vacuum Pump Material Dimensional Stability

Several materials were considered for the replacement design based upon their thermal
expansion behavior. Table 1 compares the thermal expansion coefficients of the candidate
materials. Engineering thermoset material PF 1110 has coefficients of thermal expansion very
close to those of steel (0.10 vs. 0.11) and behaves isotropically. By contrast, the engineering
thermoplastic materials have higher coefficients of thermal expansion and illustrate anisotropic
behavior.
Table 1. Coefficients of thermal expansion for vacuum pump candidate materials.
Construction Material Steel Aluminum Magnesium Engineering Engineering Engineering Engineering
(A380) (AZ91) Thermoplastic Thermoplastic Thermoset Thermoset
High 65% mineral (PF 1110) (PF 6510)
temperature and glass
resistant 50% filled PPS
glass filled
PPA
Coefficient Transverse 0.11 0.22 0.26 0.15 0.19 0.10 0.25
of
Thermal Longitudinal 0.11 0.22 0.26 0.40 0.36 0.10 0.25
Expansion
-6
(10 /°C)

Tg

Figure 4. Coefficient of thermal expansion of engineering thermoset (PF 1110).

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 Figure 4 shows the detailed thermal expansion behavior of the engineering thermoset
candidate material PF 1110. The material demonstrates a very low coefficient of thermal
expansion of 13 to 15 x 10-6/°C up to 200°C. The automotive customer favored the engineering
thermoset material on the basis that its thermal expansion was low and predictable - greatly
facilitating the part design.

Long-term Fatigue Strength

Water and vacuum pumps experience dynamic loads from the vehicle’s engine and from
road inputs making fatigue strength an important consideration. Figure 5 compares the fatigue
performance of the candidate engineering thermoset and thermoplastic materials. After 1
million cycles, the engineering thermoplastic materials lose 35% - 40% of their initial strength
compared to 10 – 20% for engineering thermosets. The more consistent properties of the
engineering thermosets made lifetime predictions easier for the design engineer.
Normalized Fatigue Strength (MPa) R=0.1 frequency 5 Hz 23 °C
120%
Strength (%)

100%

PF 6510
Tensile (%)

80%
Tensile

PF 1110
PPS 40% GF
PPS 65% GF
of Fatigue

60%
PPA 50%
Fatigue

Log. (PF 6510)

NormalizedPercent

Log. (PF 1110)

40%
Log. (PPS 40% GF)
Log. (PPS 65% GF)

20% Log. (PPA 50%)

0%
1.E+03 1.E+04 1.E+05 1.E+06 1.E+07

Load Cycles [N]

Figure 5. Fatigue strength of engineering thermosets PF 1110, PF 6510, PPS (40% and 60% GF) and PPA 50% GF.

RELATIVE PART COSTS AND FINAL WEIGHT COMPARISON

Engineering thermosets can be either injection or compression molded. Injection molding
was the process used for both the water pump and vacuum pump parts based on their
geometry and required production rates. Figure 6 provides a cost comparison between the
injection molded engineering thermoset and die-cast aluminum pump parts. By replacing
aluminum with engineering thermosets, the processing costs were significantly reduced.
Detailed surfaces were molded into the thermoset part and did not require extra machining
steps normally required of die cast aluminum. The total sum of direct material, processing and
tooling costs was approximately 15% less for the engineering thermoset than the baseline part
in die-cast aluminum. The engineering thermoset material saved an estimated 30% over the
equivalent aluminum part weight.

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 Part Weight
Tooling
Production
Direct Materials

Figure 6. Weight and typical cost reduction for pump parts composed of an injection molded engineering thermoset
grade versus aluminum die-casting. The cost estimate assumes that capital equipment is already installed and does
not include manufacturing overhead. The input data for aluminum die-cast is based on London Metal Exchange for
direct material price and CustomPartNet estimator.4,5

ENGINEERING THERMOSET RECYCLING

Material recyclability is increasingly important to automotive manufacturers. It is possible to
recycle engineering thermosets in four general ways. With mechanical recycling, cured
thermoset scrap can be ground and reintroduced to the compounding process to make new
parts. Molding compounds can contain up to 20% regrind depending on the performance
requirements of the finished part.6 Chemical approaches involve pyrolysis or solvolysis whereby
the matrix material is separated from the fiber reinforcement.7 Another approach promoted in
Europe and Japan introduces the thermoset material to the cement making process. The
inorganic parts reduce to ash and bond with the cement clinker. The organic material serves as
a thermal energy source in the calcination process.8 Finally, incineration is considered a
suitable method for disposing of thermoset waste. Figure 7 diagrams a typical life-cycle for
thermoset automotive under-the-hood parts.

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 Figure 7. Life-cycle supply chain for under-the-hood parts.

CONCLUSION
In two under-the-hood application examples, engineering thermosets were successful
alternatives to die cast aluminum and engineering thermoplastic materials (Table 2).

Table 2. Summary comparison of engineering materials for under-the-hood components.

Die Cast Engineering Engineering

Performance Criteria
Aluminum Thermoplastic Thermoset
Chemical Resistance ++ +++
Dimensional Stability + +++
Creep + ++
BASELINE
Fatigue Strength ++ +++
Mass Reduction ++ ++
Cost Reduction + ++
Recyclability ++ ++

Engineering thermosets provided improved performance for properties such as chemical

resistance, dimensional stability, creep and fatigue strength. Part weight, an important criterion
for the customer, was 30% less than die cast aluminum while costing less to manufacture.
Finally, there are several possible methods for recycling engineering thermosets.

REFERENCES
1. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE)
[Link] 2012.
2. Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, Ryton® PPS Resins Brochure,
[Link]
us/Documents/[Link], December 2012.
3. Messer, Curtis, Messer Moteren Werke, Cooling Systems,
[Link] 2012.
4. London Metal Exchange, Settlement Prices, [Link] December 2012.

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 5. CustomPartNet, Cost Estimation Tool, [Link] December
2012.
6. Derosa, R.L., Recycling Glass-Reinforced Thermoset Polymer Composite Materials,
[Link]
/report/F, 2004.
7. Jiang, Guozhan et al., Recycling Carbon Fibre/Epoxy Resin Composites Using Supercritical
Propanol, 16th International Conference on Composite Materials, 2007.
8. European Composites Industry Association, “Position Paper on Recycling of Thermosetting
Composite Parts in the Automotive Industry,” 2009.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Momentive Specialty Chemicals develops and manufactures a wide range of products for
composites applications including thermoset resin systems, fiber sizings, preform aids and
additives. Send inquiries to [Link] for more detail.

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