Stable Despite Heat: Special Design Allows Plastic Pallets to Take Maximum Load Even Over 45 Degrees Celsius
February 16, 2010 by Rick LeBlanc
Filed under Latest News
KOENIGSBRUNN, Germany, February 16, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — In the next few years the Gulf States could become the biggest exporter of plastics. But the processing firms are faced with a challenge: the strength of plastic begins to diminish from temperatures of 45 degrees Celsius upwards. So when Ettlinger Kunststoffmaschinen GmbH was appointed by a company in the Gulf States to design a plastic pallet, it was going to be necessary to ensure its desired load capacity and stability. The new pallets were developed according to a strict concept. “First we produced a theoretical design of the pallet geometry based on our experience and computer simulations,” relates Ettlinger. Crucial discoveries were made from practical tests on a transportation system, which was also installed with the end user.
When manufacturing plastic pallets the load-bearing capacity is dependent on several factors, for one thing on the molecular structure of the plastic used and for another, a significant contribution can be made to the strength of the plastic by crystallisation. Strengthening is also achieved by the addition of glass or carbon fibres. The strength of a plastic part is, however, essentially determined by its design.
“The tests made crucial discoveries in many details, such as layout and the position of the ribs and their attachment to side walls in the base and top areas,” explains Ettlinger. These results are said to have contributed to great rigidity of the pallet with a reduction in weight at the same time.
(http://www.ettlinger.com)
