We have overhauled our website with a brand new interface which is host to many improvements.
6/24/08
Nida-Core Corp. has added a new feature to our website: Environmentally
Friendly Green Products. Check out how NidaCore composite
material technology is helping save our earth.
04/28/2008
Watch a video based on our geotextile ground stabliser
product NidaCore FC More...
04/08/2008
Nida-Core Corp. has added a new feature to our website: Product
Concept Videos &Animations. These concepts are visual
tools to show how Nida-Core compares to other composite material
technology.
08/15/2007
Welcome to Nida-Core's new web-site! News will be posted here
to let you know what is new in our company, and you can subscribe
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08/15/2007
Nida-Core Corp. is
proud to introduce a new Structural Foam Core product NIDAFOAM
PET 100 and 150 Click for
details
07/8/2007
Nida-Core Corp. is
celebrating 20 years of innovation in the industry!
Nida-Core's line of lightweight plastic honeycomb core material doesn't just look good on the lab charts. They stand up to the tests of the real world. In laboratories the results can be controlled by highly skilled lab technicians, but when you are out in your boat on the water you need resilience to bumps and grinds that are accidental as well. Building with Nida-Core assures you that your boat is built with a lightweight, durable, plastic honeycomb ready to handle all kinds of stresses. A core material with unique properties, Nida-Core's Structural Honeycomb combines the strength and resilience of our special Honeycomb sheet design while also remaining a great sound damping material with excellent structure-born sound damping properties.
Light
Nature provides the geometry, we provide the honeycomb composite material. Nida-Core is extruded from tough, versatile polypropylene plastic. (Other materials are available). Thermo fused to the honeycomb cells are non-woven polyester bonding scrims with a polypropylene barrier film to limit resin consumption. When encapsulated in a laminate it is recognized by the US Coast Guard as a primary flotation material in small boats.
Tough
The important question is: "How do these plastic honeycomb sheets hold up in the real world?" Although no lightweight sheet is the answer to every possible application, Nida-Core boasts the broadest list of positive features. Some honeycomb cores are either stiff, light, quiet or economical. Nida-Core is all of the above...and more!
Quiet
Polypropylene honeycomb is an effective sound dampening material that provides a very low natural harmonic due to the polypropylene's viscoelacity and cell structure, effectively dampening sound and vibrations. Boats manufactured with Nida-Core honeycomb sheets demonstrate a dramatic improvement in vibrational dampening compared to traditional lightweight sheet construction methods.
ACOUSTICS
1 – INTRODUCTION
The NidaCore honeycombs have high acoustical characteristics because of their composition :
- They are made of polypropylene, a viscoelastic material, ready to absorb vibrations.
_ Damping properties
- The mesh of the honeycombs structure, with its particular shape, allows to trap and damp most of the sound waves. In reality, the sound gets inside the cells, then rebounds decreasingly on the cell walls (because of their viscoelastic properties).
_ Sound absorption properties
- Made with the accurate facings, the NidaCore honeycombs (whose cells contain air) make the "spring" part of a composite system mass/spring/mass, working efficiently against the sound transmission.
_ Sound insulation properties
2 – VIBRATIONS DAMPING
The damping properties of a material are its capacity to lower the vibrations under which it is submitted. Theses vibrations could have mechanical or acoustical origins.A material has good damping properties if it releases low vibration levels, consequently if it has a low acoustical radiation. At the opposite, a poor damping material easily starts to vibrate at the lowest stimulation applied on it.
The damping capacity is characterized by the loss factor h, with values generally between 0 and 1. The Young modulus of the material has also an influence on this factor. To reach a high damping level, you need a soft material, capable to transform into heat all vibrations. It is true for the viscoelastic polymers, and especially for polypropylene. Consequently, the NidaCore honeycombs are well adapted for all the applications where the sound level of a vibrating structure has to be lowered.
For your information, the following curve is comparing the damping level resulting from different panels. The vibrations are made by a motor boat. The X line shows the motor rotation speed, and on the Y line the vibration level.
The NidaCore efficiency can easily be noticed on the above graphics because it is a viscoelastic product with a low modulus. Compared with a wooden core, it is possible in some case to lower by 50% the vibrations level.
3 - SOUND ABSORPTION
The acoustic absorption is the property which prevents sound reflection. To have a good absorption level, you need a material which is able to trap the sound waves. It is true for the porous or honeycombs materials on which the sound wave spreading is limited. The acoustical absorption is characterized by the "a sabine" factor. This factor is between 0 and 1. It is higher as the absorption level is increasing.
To have an efficient absorption level, the NidaCore has to be covered on one side with an air porous facing.
The sound waves get inside the cells and then are trapped like in an Helmoltz resonator : they rebound inside on the walls until they are completely absorbed.
Below find the two separate and informative graphics on the a value for two different types of NidaCore sandwich panels:
We notice a large absorption level for most of the frequencies. However, it is possible to shift the absorption level and the graph top value by playing on the NidaCore® thickness and on the facing porosity.
4 - SOUND INSULATION
The acoustic properties for an element dividing two rooms are defined by its ability to
lower the noise released from one side and its perception on the other side. The insulation is characterized by the weaken factor quoted R (difference between the released and received intensities) which may shift from a few decibels to several ten decibels (for information, the decibels are calculated from a logarithmic scale. A 3dB decrease represents a decrease of half of the sound power).
It is important to differentiate two types of partition for the acoustic insulation analysis
:
_ If we consider a structure with a single homogenous partition, the only factor which increases sound insulation is the mass. Heavier is the partition and better is the insulation.
_ If we consider a composite structure (mass/spring/mass), which means an alternation of heavy layers and damping layers, it is then more difficult to define the weaken value factor.
To simplify, in such a structure, the first "mass" vibrates and transmits the waves to the "spring". This "spring" then transmits the vibrations to the second "mass", but because of its composition, it damps them. Such a structure has a resonance frequency where its weaken factor is low, but by playing on the mass for the partitions,
it is possible to "choose" this resonance frequency. For example, we can look for it, to bring out the structure resonance frequency under 90 Hz which is the lower limit of the defined spectrum for the acoustic in the building. The weaken value for a composite structure, as soon as we are above the resonance frequency, is in all
cases above and very above the value obtained with the heavy mass alone.
The NidaCore honeycombs allow making light structural sandwich panels. In these composite panels, they will play like a spring as related above. The facings of the sandwich panels are the heavy mass of the structure.
Thus, it is possible to have a very good weaken factor for the sandwich structure made with a NidaCore core.
Compared to the glass wool, the NidaCore® will not reach the same damping levels.However, it makes a compromise between sound damping and structural properties, which other insulation materials are not able to compete against.
The acoustical properties for a sandwich panels made with NidaCore are bond to a lot of parameters (the facing types which cover the NidaCore core, the sizes, fixation types, the acoustical waves and frequencies applied…). It is not possible to give all the main characteristics, but only indicative values with different facings and under various acoustical solicitations:
Below, some acoustical insulation graphics for NidaCore - based sandwich panels with two different facings:
NOTE : The indicated directions can serve as a guide to use the product but cannot be considered as a guarantee of a good working up.Additionally application, utilization and/or transformation of the products escape our control possibilities. As a consequence, they exclusively remain the responsibility of the user and/or the transformer.
Engineering
The mechanical properties of Nida-Core Honeycomb sheet core material are controlled by the following specifications: 1) physical properties of the thermoplastic; 2) cell diameter; 3) wall gauge (thickness of the cell wall); 4) core thickness; and 5) facings applied to the core. Altering one or more of these specifications will produce different performance characteristics. Nida-Core plastic honeycomb sheets can be engineered to be a specific weight, absorb a specific load, rebound at a specified rate and possess the flexibility or stiffness required by the end application.
Rot Proof
PVC and SAN Foams are attacked by styrene and absorb water when exposed,
plywood and balsa wood rot or lose strength when wet. Nida-Core plastic honeycomb does NOT rot
and is unaffected by most solvents and chemical agents. Additionally, when
encapsulated in a laminate using a non-aqueous resin, the scrim forms a seal
limiting water migration through the structure, even if skin is punctured.
Excellent Bond As A Structural Material
The honeycomb cell walls are fused into the non-woven polyester scrim. That coupled
with the scrim's affinity for virtually any resin or adhesive system provides
exceptional bond and peel strength.
Impact Resistance Core Material
There are many cores that can make a light, stiff structure. Nida-Core,
however, combines the light weight and stiffness of honeycomb with tough
polypropylene plus superior bonding properties due to the thermo fused scrim.
The combination allows Nida-Core plastic honeycomb sheets to absorb and dissipate impacts and shocks
repeatedly that would cause ultimate catastrophic failure in other core
materials.
Thermal Insulation Of Core Material
Nida-Core plastic honeycomb sheets have the ability to dissipate heat from the bondline, which prevents heat from accumulating either in the cells of the plastic honeycomb core or in the critical skin laminate so heat deflection temperatures are not exceeded. While the combination of polypropylene cell walls and dead air space provides insulation properties, there is some radiational transfer through the plastic honeycomb cell that prevents heat banking at the bondline. If greater thermal insulation is required we can provide foam filled honeycomb sheets.
Nida-Core Structural Polypropylene honeycomb is used extensively in this Club Med Resorts catamaran dive boat in the Caribbean Islands, from the hull to superstructure. Again, the vessel benefits from Nida-Core's exceptional sound dampening, architectural material properties, making the day trips enjoyable in this quiet boat. Additionally, the weight savings resulting from the use of lightweight plastic sheet sandwich construction, enable the craft to utilize smaller motors and bigger fuel tankage, giving the vessel extended range.
Increased Payload Capacity
This rental truck body in the UK is cored with Nida-Core H8PP Plastic Honeycomb to make the composite bodies more damage tolerant and resilient, so they can withstand the rigors of everyday abuse. Sandwich architectural panel truck bodies reduce weight, therefore increasing payload capacity and saving fuel .
Torsional Rigidity
French auto manufacturer Renault uses polypropylene honeycomb sheets fused to GE AZDEL skin and PP carpet in its sandwich constructed floors, aiding this Spyder to achieve exceptional torsional rigidity and rendering the floor recyclable.
Body Armor Applications
Nida-Core resilient, lightweight, plastic honeycomb sheets are ideally suited for many types of body armor applications. The resilient nature of Nida-Core Structural Polypropylene honeycomb benefits vehicle body armor by absorbing and dissipating impact stresses. Nida-Core FC Honeycomb can be tailored for almost unlimited applications, engineered to suit the end-users requirements, from several different types of thermoplastics.
Heavy Trucking Applications
Leading heavy truck manufacturer
WESTERN STAR trucks rely on
Nida-Core for sandwich architectural sheet construction for sleeper
cabs.
Necessary Toughness
This American icon, made famous in the 1990's protecting our troops during Gulf War, relies heavily on the inherent toughness of Nida-Core polypropylene honeycomb sheets which provides the necessary characteristics to construct the roof for this ultimate troop mobility vehicle. Nida-Core's plastic honeycomb composite material is ideally suited for transportation application as it is easily thermoformed in large sheets and contours easily to the required curvature, at the same time providing necessary toughness for this intensive use application and cost effectiveness demanded by large automotive OEMs.
Perfect for Intricate Shapes
The intricate shape of these retro
travel trailers shows the unlimited potential of using versatile Nida-Core
polypropylene honeycomb for structural applications such as the body and
floor. As the process requires, foam is often troublesome to laminate under
vacuum pressure, where score kerfs often create negative pressure areas,
where styrene fumes collect, thus softening the foam around or leaving un
or undercured resin pockets within the laminate. Due to its elastic nature,
Nida-Core plastic sheets do not have to be scored for vacuum bag applications, and polypropylene
backer to reduce resin consumption, under the polyester scrim is sufficient
to avoid resin to fill the hollow honeycomb cells.
Transportation
The versatility and high strength-to-weight ratio of Nida Core Structural honeycomb plastic sheets offers great advantages to the transportation industry. The ability of Nida-Core architectural panels to act as a sound dampening material make it the choice material for the construction of cabs, floors, walls, doors, panels and roofs for vans , trucks , trailers and trains. Lightweight Panel Sandwich construction helps vehicles reduce tare weight. Lower weight means greater cargo capacity for truckers, thus greater profits.
Less Fuel and Maintenance
Lightweight fiberglass composites busses and public transport vehicles require less fuel and maintenance, are more damage tolerant than architectural metal paneling like: aluminum and steel, and cause less damage to city streets.
Recyclable
Nida-Core's plastic honeycomb architectural panels are 100% recyclable, making it the choice material for automotive application. Available with a wide variety of facings, from polypropylene carpet to patterned skins, entire sections can be recycled as a whole. Nida-Core honeycomb sheets are thermo-formable, thus cutting production cost to level acceptable to large OEM manufacturers.
Yachts
Here is a fine example of a 120' Mega-yacht hull tooling, built by master mold makers Vectorworks in Titusville, FL, fully covered with Nida-Core Structural polypropylene
honeycomb sheets (38 mm thickness). Result is increased stiffness, reduced resin and fiberglass consumption, excellent long term structural stability. Using Nida-Core Structural
Honeycomb sheets to build composite tooling is advantageous due to the reduced bond line temperature and better exotherm heat transfer through the tool.
Corrosion Resistance
Always a concern for automotive
industry, Nida-Core, with its corrosion resistance, low water absorption,
and high strength advantages, is also a suitable choice for oil drilling
platform construction, double containment vessels, tank bottoms and lids,
duct work and wherever corrosion is a problem and chemical resistance is
a must.
No catastrophique
failure mode.
Disclaimer: The plywood skinned panels are flat when they come out of the press and every effort is made to provide panels that will remain so. We carefully inspect the plywood before use, however it is an organic product and changes in humidity may cause slight temporary out-of-flatness of the panel
Tests
Nida-Core H8PP
SI Unit conversion
Compressive Strength NFT 56101 (psi)
~200
1.3 Mpa
Compressive Modulus ASTM D1621(psi)
2175
15Mpa
Tensile Strength NFT 56130(psi)
72.5
0.5 Mpa
Tensile Modulus ASTM D1623(psi)
43575
300.5Mpa
Shear Strength NFT 56118(psi)
70
0.5 Mpa
Shear Modulus NFT 56118(psi)
725
5 Mpa
Thermal Conductivity By Fourier Law
k=.03
k=.03
Water Absorption in 24 hours
0.10%
0.10%
Dimensional Thermal Stability
(-40)°F to (230)°F
(-40)°C to (110)°C
Flammability ASTM
Inflammable, Not
Inflammable, Not
D776
toxic smoke
toxic smoke
Density
4.8 Lbs/ft3
80 kg/m3
Peel Strength
Excellent
Excellent
Fatigue Resistance
Excellent
Excellent
Impact Resistance
Excellent
Excellent
Sound Attenuation
Greater than 22Db
Greater than 22Db
Note: PP film 200 microns thick available for RTM 8 scrimp
applications.
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The acoustic absorption is the property which prevents sound reflection. To have a good absorption level, you need a material which is able to trap the sound waves. It is true for the porous or honeycombs materials on which the sound wave spreading is limited. The acoustical absorption is characterized by the "a sabine" factor. This factor is between 0 and 1. It is higher as the absorption level is increasing.
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