Since 2013, Mazda Motor Corp. and Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. have been developing a range of new materials for use on vehicle interiors and exteriors, but now the companies’ bio-based polycarbonate resin called Durabio \u2014 made from plant-derived isosorbide \u2014 is being used to mold large exterior components.<\/p>\n
Take the 2017 Mazda CX-5 compact crossover, for example, where the Japanese automaker placed Durabio in a front-and-center position on the front grille.<\/p>\n
A spokesman for Mazda’s team in Hiroshima, Japan, said that compared with conventional petrochemical-based plastics, Durabio exhibits “superior chemical resistance,” enabling the front-end plastic part to withstand abrasive road debris.<\/p>\n
The material also features “superior properties” compared with other bio-based plastics in areas like impact resistance, heat resistance and weathering, Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. said in a news release. Its transparency allows for a “mirror-like smooth surface” and vivid colors when pigments are added.<\/p>\n
Durabio’s hard surface and scratch resistance also eliminates the need for any coating process, reducing volatile organic compound emissions during the manufacturing stage, the company said.<\/p>\n
“In terms of the surface design finish, we actually exceeded our goal and produced a finish of higher quality than traditional painted parts,” Mazda’s spokesman said in a Jan. 10 email interview.<\/p>\n
Most of Mazda’s vehicle models are already using the material, which was first used for an interior part on the 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata and an exterior part on the Mazda CX-9 midsize crossover, the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n
Durabio has also been used on various interior parts, ranging from gear shift covers and cup holder bezels to console side decorative panels; and exterior parts, such as C pillar garnishes, among other applications.<\/p>\n
Additionally, in 2016, French automaker Renault used Durabio on the outer mask of the speedometer-tachometer combo for the dashboard of the Clio. In 2013, Japanese automaker Suzuki Motor Corp., which also partnered with Mitsubishi on the development of Durabio, used the bio-based plastic on the interior color panels of the Suzuki Hustler. Durabio was later used on interior color panels for Suzuki’s 2015 Alto Lapin.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Since 2013, Mazda Motor Corp. and Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. have been developing a range of new materials for use on vehicle interiors and exteriors, but now the companies’ bio-based polycarbonate resin called Durabio \u2014 made from plant-derived isosorbide \u2014 is being used to mold large exterior components. Take the 2017 Mazda CX-5 compact crossover, for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","nova_meta_subtitle":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5572],"tags":[7059,13442,5847],"supplier":[166],"class_list":["post-49136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bio-based","tag-automotive","tag-biomaterial","tag-bioplastics","supplier-mazda-motor-corporation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49136"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49136\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49136"},{"taxonomy":"supplier","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renewable-carbon.eu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/supplier?post=49136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}