Optimizing the foaming of wall panels

Initial situation
A manufacturer of wall panels sought to reduce the density of its products while achieving a uniform, fine-cell foam structure. The use of a chemical blowing agent was intended to save material and further improve product quality.

Initial tests with a foaming agent from the TRAMACO-portfolio already yielded promising results. The desired foam structure was partially achieved, but there was still room for optimization in terms of cell fineness, homogeneity, and process stability.

Joint on-site analysis
To better understand the customer’s requirements and process conditions, an on-site visit was conducted. During the visit, TRAMACO’s application engineers worked with the customer to analyze the production conditions, process parameters, and requirements for the final product.

The insights gained enabled a detailed evaluation of the results to date and provided valuable guidance on which properties of the foaming agent needed to be specifically adjusted to achieve the desired foam quality.

Development of a customized solution
Based on the analysis, TRAMACO developed a new foaming agent formulation specifically tailored to the customer’s requirements. Particular attention was paid to controlled gas release and optimal adaptation to the polymer’s processing conditions.

In addition, TRAMACO’s application engineers were able to provide the customer with several recommendations for adjusting the process parameters to ensure optimal results in combination with the new blowing agent formulation.

Upon completion of the development phase, the new foaming agent was tested under real production conditions as part of a new round of sampling.

The result
The new formulation led to a significant improvement in the foam structure. The wall panels achieved the desired density reduction while producing a homogeneous, fine-celled foam structure. Furthermore, stable and reproducible processing was ensured.

The customer was extremely satisfied with the results and is now able to reliably produce its wall panels in the desired quality and with the required material properties.

Added value for the customer

• successful reduction in product density
• uniform, fine-cell foam structure
• optimized process stability
• custom-developed foaming agent solution
• rapid implementation through close technical collaboration
• mass production possible at the desired product quality

This successful collaboration demonstrates how even the most demanding foaming requirements can be reliably met through a combination of application engineering, on-site analysis, and customer-specific product development.