US-based chemical company Dow expanded its composites portfolio in March, with the Voraforce 1100 series of polyurethane systems developed for composites fabrication by filament winding, to enhance the existing epoxy systems offering, says Dow marketing manager Francesca Pignagnoli.

The high-performance series enables continuous reinforcement and manufacture of cylindrical and conical structures, as found in power and transmission poles, and offers enhanced toughness and robustness, while enabling easy installation and maintenance, she explains.

Dow traces its South African origins back to 1959 when its first sales office was established.

Composite Advantages

Specifically in infrastructure applications, filament-winding composites offer significant advantages over the conventionally used concrete poles, as it enables variations in flexibility, strength, and pressure holding capacities, says Pignagnoli.

Owing to the light weight of the material, transportation is more efficient and installation becomes fast and easy. In cases of severe weather events, composites offer improved reliability and maintenance owing to their toughness, she adds.

Product design and life, overall cost-effectiveness and durability are additional advantages of using composites in infrastructure applications.

Expanding Filament Winding

The Dow Voraforce 1100 series enables full 110 KV composites pole-winding capabilities and, therefore, complements the available range of polyurethane systems for smaller poles, such as 10 KV, notes Pignagnoli.

In this application, Voraforce polyurethane systems help improve elongation, toughness, and crack resistance, as compared to conventional materials and other types of resins.

Owing to its fast reaction profile, as well as excellent performance in secondary operations such as cutting and drilling, polyurethane solutions may also offer more cost-effective production for its users.

In testing, the system demonstrated good process ability and results in critical manufacturing conditions with humidity, she says.

To complete the package, Dow has also developed an ultraviolet-resistant finishing polyurethane system, which can be wound in a one step production process to create the final protection layer for the pole.

“Made to perform in demanding production environments, this new series with polyurethane resins rounds off the existing Voraforce 100 epoxy systems offering used for filament winding of pipe, tanks, pressure vessels and rollers,” explains Pignagnoli.

She adds: “Dow’s approach is to use its expertise and broad portfolio across multiple chemistries to tailor solutions for customers that best match the material and processing properties to the requirements of the market application.”

Advanced composites solutions, from Dow, can offer significant performance, efficient processing and cost advantages for the fabrication of light, strong and durable composites used in transportation, industrial, infrastructure, construction and wind energy markets, concludes Pignagnoli.