Kuraray: Innovative elastomer solutions

At Fakuma Kuraray will highlight its comprehensive TPE portfolio including the established Septon and Hybrar brands and will also inform about its range of innovative liquid isoprene rubbers (Kuraray Liquid Rubber KLR). The company will exhibit together with its long-time distributor Marubeni.

Septon Q for durable and light-weight sport shoes

Kurarity is Kuraray’s new soft acrylic TPE. It is a highly transparent and polar material for a wide range of applications, for example re-writable films. The new production facility in Niigata, Japan, is said to come on stream in November 2011.

Under the brand name Kuramiron the company offers thermoplastic polyurethane elastomers which are highly durable, gel-free, and especially suited for film applications.

The Septon Q series comprises materials that combine light weight, durability, and scratch resistance with easy processing and soft-touch. Their first commercial application was in soccer shoes.

Septon J is a series of hydrogenated styrenic TPEs specifically designed to give end products flexibility and a soft feel. It is suitable for parts requiring low-hardness gel, including bandages, and footwear insoles.

The grades of the Septon K series can be injection-moulded or extruded directly onto glass or metal without pretreatment because of their very good adhesion properties.

The portfolio of the business unit Elastomers of Kuraray also comprises high-viscosity polymeric liquid rubber based on isoprene (LIR) and butadiene (LBR). These LIR/LBR are mainly used as reactive plasticizers in the rubber industry. LIR/LBR rubber is co-vulcanizable, and therefore shows no migration tendencies. There are also functionalised liquid rubber grades available that bond to a wide variety of matrices and,in particular improve rubber-to-metal bonding.

TP-301 is a trans polyisoprene that is used as synthetic gutta percha for medical splints and in hotmelt applications.