DuPont Co.'s work with electric vehicles and sustainability goes beyond material development.
"We're not just supplying materials," Giacomo Parisi, global marketing director for automotive electrification, said Oct. 12 at Fakuma 2021. "We're working with our customers and deciding how to meet their challenges.
"We can do metal replacement or redesign a whole system or whatever they need," he added. "That's the way we work."
New Zytel High Temperature Nylon (HTN) materials from Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont are being used in a motor on Ferrari's SF90 Stradale hybrid vehicle. Those materials and new grades of Crastin-brand polybutylene terephthalate also are being used in fuel cells and battery packs.
"The key is safety — how to make a battery pack safe," Parisi said.
DuPont also is producing sustainable materials with both renewable base materials and post-consumer content. "It's important to let the customer know that it's not just a green name; it's sustainability and quality," Parisi said.
Other recent DuPont material advancements have focused on supporting e-motor and power electronic efficiencies, as well as safety, lightweighting, durability and connectivity.
At Fakuma, DuPont is announcing the launch of an extension to its Zytel HTN range of electrically friendly nylon materials. Other DuPont advancements in vehicle electrification include a hybrid bobbin produced from Zytel HTN-brand nylon that supports thermal management in e-motors and a plastic/metal hybrid cooling plate where a channel plate made from Zytel HTN is chemically bonded to aluminum.
DuPont last month announced the opening of three Centers of Excellence for vehicle electrification. Officials said that these technology centers, located in Europe and China and supported by other global R&D and technical service centers, will support ongoing developments in battery safety, thermal management and e-powertrain efficiency.
Earlier this year, DuPont announced plans to invest $5 million into a pair of European facilities — in Schkopau, Germany, and Freienbach, Switzerland — to increase capacity of bonding adhesives and thermal management products for electric vehicles. The firm also disclosed plans to build a $30 million manufacturing facility in Zhangjiagang, China, for EV vehicle materials.
In March, DuPont acquired specialty products maker Laird Performance Materials for $2.3 billion in cash. Cleveland-based Laird is a major supplier of electromagnetic shielding and thermal management products. Plastics-related products made by Laird include gaskets, tapes, foams and microwave absorbers. The firm employs more than 4,300 at 11 global sites and posted sales of $465 million in 2020.
DuPont is a major global producer of specialty chemicals and plastics, including nylon resin. The firm posted sales of $20.4 billion in 2020.
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