Offshore windmill park.
DUSSELDORF, GERMANY: Arlanxeo Holding BV’s high performance elastomers business unit introduces a halogen-free ethylene-vinyl acetate synthetic rubber (EVM) Levapren EVM Elastomers, which helps to significantly reduce the spread of fire and the subsequent damage due to hydrochloric acid corrosion in or near generators, thus protecting large installations and considerable investments in the event of fire.
Specially formulated Levapren 500 and Levapren 700 compounds are ideally suited for use in nacelles of wind turbines, specifically in the cable sheathing, because they contain no halogens, so they do not emit the highly corrosive hydrochloric acid gas normally released by halogen-based materials in a fire.
In addition to being halogen-free, these Levapren EVM grades have comparatively high vinyl acetate (VA) content which makes them compatible with polar fillers thanks to their high polarity. They can contain large quantities of inorganic, halogen-free flame retardants, such as aluminium or magnesium hydroxide – and the polar rubber raw material does not swell in the presence of lubricating greases.
Levapren 500 and Levapren 700 do not absorb oil or grease from the surrounding machinery, so in the event of a fire, absorbed burning hydrocarbons will not destroy the flame suppressing properties of the cable jacket.
The molecular weight of Levapren is particularly widely distributed and well controlled. In addition, it is a gel-free product, which has a positive effect on the processability of the material and the quality of the end product.
“Wind power is considered to be one of the most environmentally friendly sources of energy. And if a fire does occur, the consequences (e.g. corrosion by halogenic gases) must be minimized as much as possible. So it makes sense for operators to focus on prevention by choosing Levapren EVM elastomer,” said Jorg Stumbaum, manager technical marketing (chloroprene rubber) CR/EVM at Arlanxeo.
© Worldofchemicals News