New engineering polyester resin offered An injection-molded, liquid-crystal, polyester engineering resin with su perior properties has been intro duced by Dartco Manufacturing, Augusta, Ga., a subsidiary of Dart & Craft. The resin, called Xydar, surpasses most other engineering plastics in strength, toughness, melt flow, retention of properties at high t e m p e r a t u r e s , and resistance to chemicals, solvents, and fire. The company has aimed the plas tic at demanding applications in telecommunications, defense, elec tronics, aerospace, and automobiles. One disadvantage of the resin is its high price—$28 to $30 per lb for each of two unfilled grades and one 50% talc-filled grade. The firm ex pects the price to come down as volume develops. A second disadvantage is the very high processing temperature. The 793 °F melt temperature means that molders will have to fit h i g h -
temperature ceramic heaters to their barrels and heat molds to 465 to 535 °F to run the resin. But the high melt flow makes it possible to mold parts with walls thinner than 4 mm, such as might be needed for multipin connectors and three-dimensional circuit boards. And the resin attains its full strength in the mold while still hot. No postcure is needed to develop its prop erties. Scrap pieces of Xydar can be pulverized and reused entirely. Dartco has installed a 20 million lb-per-year plant to produce the ma terial at Augusta. The firm has been making test-marketing amounts in a 2 million lb-per-year plant at Neshanic Station, N.J. Xydar is a polyester of terephthalic acid, /?-hydroxybenzoic acid, and ρ,ρ'-biphenol. The melt is a nematic liquid crystal. This ordering persists in molded parts as densely packed, fibrous structure. D
Allied Corp. acquisition rumors are quashed In a flurry of sometimes contradic tory statements last week, Allied Corp. and United Technologies de nied rumors that United Technol ogies might be moving to acquire Allied. The rumors arose with the revelation that United Technologies had hired two investment banking firms to study a possible purchase. United Technologies says it de cided not to acquire Allied after the two studies, performed by Lazard Frères and Goldman, Sachs, both concluded that a merger would be adverse to the interest of United Technologies shareholders. The studies were commissioned, United Technologies says, because it had been approached repeatedly over the past year by Allied chairman Edward L. Hennessy Jr. and his representatives with the aim of having United Technologies acquire Allied. United Technologies says it took action only after Allied's approaches intensified in September. "Allied is not for sale," Hennessy told employees last week after disclosure of the merger studies. Later, Allied refused to reply to United Technologies' statement it was Hen-
nessy himself who had proposed the sale. "No useful purpose would be served by airing charges and countercharges in the press," an Allied spokeswoman says. "Our chairman stands by his statement to employees that Allied is not for sale."
Hennessy: Allied is not for sale
Speculation on Wall Street after the exchange of statements was that, if Hennessy did approach United Technologies, it may have been with the idea of using a merger as a route to the top position at United Technologies. Hennessy was executive vice president of that company until 1979, when he moved to Allied after differences with Harry J. Gray, United Technologies' chairman. D
Atochem, ICI may swap some businesses France's Atochem and Imperial Chemical Industries of the U.K. have started negotiations that could lead to an exchange of portions of their chemicals businesses. A decision is expected early next year. The negotiations center on ethylene oxide derivatives, low-density polyethylene, and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer. Atochem, a subsidiary of Elf Aquitaine, France's state-owned oil and chemicals concern, would hand over to ICI its ethylene oxide derivatives units at Chocques, near Arras. In return, it w o u l d acquire ICFs LDPE a n d ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer businesses, now operating out of Rozenburg, the Netherlands. The transfers would involve equipment, know-how, and marketing outlets, but not cash. If the plan materializes, it will strengthen considerably ICTs position in the ethylene oxide derivatives field. The company already has capacity for making 440 million lb a n n u a l l y of ethoxylates, glycol ethers, and the like, in addition to 187 million lb of ethylene glycol, at Wilton, England. This would be bolstered by the 132 million lb production facility at Chocques. Earlier this year, Atochem closed down its 154 million lb-a-year ethylene oxide plant. ICTs capacity at Wilton is 528 million lb. As a whole, West European producers of the oxide and glycol have been losing money heavily (C&EN, Nov. 5, page 16). There is considerable overcapacity. And the situation will be worsened by arrival on the market of glycol from Saudi Arabia. November 12, 1984 C&EN
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