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Lighting
Lighting functionality, performance and styling play a key role in brand differentiation. Strong consumer attention to lighting has propelled advancements in technology (LEDs, lasers), safety (matrix headlamps) and design (low profiles), which require specialty materials. For example, higher-flow resins are needed to produce larger and more-complex lighting systems used in new areas of the vehicle, such as the replacement of grilles in EVs. Sharply angled LED designs and adaptive (matrix) lamps with metal components can benefit from thermoplastics with high dimensional stability to enable thin walls and weight-out, respectively. Thermoplastics also facilitate part integration to provide sleeker aerodynamics and accommodate embedded ADAS sensors. Furthermore, lighting aesthetics continue to evolve with new colors and finishes such as piano black and high-gloss surfaces.
SABIC offers multiple solutions that are well-suited for automotive lighting. ULTEM™ and LNP™ XHT resins provide high heat resistance, dimensional stability and direct metallization capability for reflectors and bezels. LNP™ VISUALFX™ resins give designers a wide range of colors and unique effects for potential use in bezels and lenses.
Featured Product Brands
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LNP™ Compounds |
Specialty compounds based on 30 different resins and incorporating various fillers and additives to achieve various effects. |
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LNP™ Copolymers |
PC-based copolymers offering superior performance and specific advantages vs. standard PC. |
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NORYL™ Resins |
Modified polyphenylene ether (PPE) resins featuring high stiffness and strength, and good hydrolytic, chemical and creep resistance. |
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ULTEM™ Resins |
Polyetherimide (PEI) resins known for exceptional heat resistance, high strength and stiffness, and broad chemical resistance. |
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ELCRIN™ iQ Resins |
Polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), derived from upcycled PCR and offering good chemical resistance, direct metallization capability, high flow and low warpage. |
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LNP™ VISUALFX™ Resins |
Formulated from various base materials with the color and effect inherent in the pellet. |
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LNP™ SLX/ELCRES™ SLX Resins |
Weatherable, UV-resistant polycarbonate copolymer materials that offer excellent aesthetics including super-high gloss, metallic colors such as piano black surfaces. |
NOTE: All resins mentioned above can be supplied in a sustainable version through the LNP™ ELCRIN™ portfolio.
Matrix Lighting
Matrix lighting, also called adaptive driving beam (ADB) headlamps, consists of numerous small LED elements and mirrors controlled by software for precise aiming. This safety feature allows the use of high beams for better visibility – without blinding other motorists, pedestrians or cyclists.
Brackets that hold reflector mirrors in matrix lighting require materials with good dimensional stability to ensure these units remain in place and can function and aim light according to their design and purpose. ULTEM™ resin can potentially replace metal in bracket applications, as it offers high dimensional stability as well as high heat resistance and low outgassing to avoid damage to the mirror surface.
Featured Product Families
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ULTEM™ Resins |
provide excellent dimensional stability and high-temperature resistance and are well-suited for ADB brackets. |
Lighting for EV Grille Replacement
Elimination of the radiator grille in electric vehicles opens up a new area for lighting displays. Possibilities include various types of lighting with different functions – branding, communications, animations, etc.
LNP™ SLX resin grades help enable OEMs to develop eye-catching designs for illuminated grilles and emblems. SABIC’s ELCRES™ SLX grades offer a weatherable, diffusive solution that offers selective plating on PC/ABS and eliminates the challenges associated with coating diffusive PC in intricate geometries.
Featured Product Families
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LNP™ SLX/ELCRES™ SLX Resins |
PC/ABS blend; excellent flow and impact; high heat resistance; low temperature ductility; black and natural colors. |
Traditional Bracketry
Brackets used in non-matrix-based lighting units must deliver excellent dimensional stability. However, the standard PBT resins commonly used in these brackets can warp, causing issues with light beam aiming and alignment. To compensate, OEMs and tiers must create sophisticated bracket designs or alter part processing.
SABIC offers a different solution. Our glass-filled ELCRIN™ iQ resins, which are chemically recycled, and LNP™ THERMOCOMP™ compounds provide lower warpage compared to standard PBT. Further, by avoiding part redesigns and processing changes, these materials can potentially reduce system costs.
In addition, switching to ELCRIN™ iQ resins can improve the sustainability of bracketry. These innovative PBT materials are upcycled from single-use PET bottles.
Featured Product Grades
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ELCRIN™ iQ Resins |
upcycled from post-consumer PET bottles, feature lower warpage and enhanced sustainability compared to conventional PBT materials. |
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LNP™ THERMOCOMP™ Compounds |
provide chemical resistance, rigidity, low warpage and UV stability. |
Lenses and Light Guides
In addition to transparency and high refractive index, lenses and light guides often require high-temperature resistance compared to standard PC materials. Application examples include compact LED and OLED lighting units, which generate significant heat. LNP™ XHT copolymer resins provide high-heat performance as well as improved flow, impact and color stability compared to other high-heat materials. They can be supplied in sustainable versions based on renewable feedstocks.
Featured Product Grades
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LNP™ XHT Copolymer Resins |
are PC-based copolymers featuring high temperature resistance, low-temperature impact and excellent processability. They retain color and clarity under high heat exposure. |
Bezels and Reflectors
Dimensional stability and high-temperature performance are key properties for automotive lighting bezels and reflectors. SABIC’s direct-metallizable LNP™ XHT copolymers and ULTEM™ resins surpass incumbent materials in dimensional stability and temperature resistance, withstanding peak temperatures up to 180°C. Bezels requiring molded-in color can be made from LNP™ VISUALFX™ resins.
Heat Sinks
Dissipating heat from LED lighting and associated electronic components is essential to maintain peak intensity, color stability and efficiency and extend useful life. Compared to die-cast aluminum heat sinks, SABIC’s LNP™ KONDUIT™ compound provides greater design freedom and lighter weight and can help avoid secondary operations. These specialty compounds can also enhance sustainability. Manufacturing and fabricating an LED heat sink with injection-molded LNP KONDUIT compound is less energy intensive than using die-cast aluminum.
Featured Product Families
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LNP™ KONDUIT™ Compounds |
are thermally conductive materials that can transfer damaging heat away from lighting components into a heat sink or the surrounding air. |