Plasma Treatment Improves Automotive Headlamp Adhesion Strength
Manufacturing over 800 varieties of automotive headlamps, NEOLITE ZKW is one of the leading suppliers of automotive lighting in South Asia.
NEOLITE and ZIZALA Lichtsysteme GmbH (ZKW), of Austria, recently opened a new joint venture plant in Bahadurgarh, Haryana to exclusively serve their OEM client base. The new venture was lead by group CMD, Mr. Rajesh Jain. He works alongside the development team to incorporate the latest manufacturing technologies. The facility features a state-of-the-art laboratory, a research & development department, and in-house manufacturing.
When NEOLITE was having difficulty getting their latest headlamp design’s components to adhere, they turned to Enercon Asia Pacific for help. DGM Engineering’s, Mr. Vineet Aroa under leadership of Mr. P.K Jain (CEO) and his team were in search of the most cutting edge technology to improve adhesion.
NEOLITE ZKW needed to increase the bond strength of their silicone adhesive being applied to secure a polycarbonate lens to a polycarbonate headlamp. Using silicone adhesive is becoming more common in the automotive industry because of its ability to withstand the heat generated by the light bulbs and other internal components.
Enercon’s Dyne-A-Mite™ IT blown ion plasma treater with a Yaskawa robot Enercon application engineers analyzed NEOLITE ZKW’s headlamp design and tested the material in their lab to identify which plasma treating technology would treat their application best. Enercon’s Dyne-A-Mite™ IT blown ion plasma treater proved to be the most ideal.
The plasma treater discharges a steady stream of blown ions which micro-etches the surface creating a stronger bonding site between the adhesive and polycarbonate material. Pre-treatment alters the first few microscopic layers of the polymer to enable surfaces wettablility. The adhesive’s bond is then strengthened on troublesome materials such as polyolefins, silicones, and fluoropolymers.
The Dyne-A-Mite™ IT seamlessly integrated into their Yaskawa robot. It was then programmed to follow a precise glue track pattern prior to applying the adhesive. By integrating the plasma treater into a robot, NEOLITE ZKW is able to achieve consistent treatment and adhesion results by controlling the air gap and speed the headlamps are treated.
In addition to improving the adhesion strength between the adhesive and polymer, NEOLITE ZKW found that the dwell time became shorter which allowed them to increase their production speed and overall productivity. The NEOLITE ZKW was thoroughly impressed with the Dyne-A-Mite IT plasma treater, as it is simple to integrate, easy to operate, performs reliably and proves to be a tremendous value for their product quality and productivity.
