|
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Specific Activities in Development I [5] |
 |
|
"As with the 'sick house syndrome' problem of the construction industry, the automotive industry was being urged to voluntarily control formaldehyde, toluene and xylene and other VOCs (volatile organic compounds) that harm human health so that car indoor environments could be safer. In line with this trend, we set out in 2003 to expand our lineup of adhesives for automotive interiors to include low VOC products."
"More specifically, we changed adhesives to soluble and nonsolvent bases, and developed even solvent types that did not contain harmful toluene, xylene, benzene and so forth. These low VOC adhesives are now the standard amongst auto manufacturers. We also undertook development of adhesives used with instrument panels that house meters, switches, air-conditioners and audio devices, and even reexamined the application process itself. Here, we changed the previously used process of spraying adhesive onto molded parts and then fitting them together, to a method whereby adhesive was squeezed onto a target surface and then that part was affixed to an uncoated part. This eliminated the airborne dispersal of adhesive from the spraying process. Moreover, we changed the adhesive itself from a chloroprene base type that contained chlorine to an olefin (same as a polypropylene or polyethylene base of low environmental load) that was the same as the uncoated parts, which made the entire panel olefin-based after gluing and, thus, improved recyclability."
"The future will likely call not only for adhesive safety but also proposals that go as far as processes, as this did. We will continue to adopt new perspectives in development in order to meet these needs." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|