Renewable, sustainable and waste-reducing: these are the aims underpinning Cat-HTR (Catalytic Hydrothermal Reactor) technology. It can be used to recycle plastic waste within 20 minutes. The oil obtained can be used again to make new polymer products. In order to support the circular economy of plastics, igus has now invested €4.7 million in a company that plans to start up the first commercial Cat-HTR plant.
Defrosting glaciers and declining fish stocks are just two examples of the effects of climate change in Alaska. In order to raise awareness of the issue among the population and to promote alternative drives, the Hoepner brothers from Berlin are developing their amphibious vehicle “Urmel”. They want to travel across Alaska with it. In order for Urmel to be able to drive over hill and dale and ice and snow, light and wear-resistant bearings are required. With the support of igus, the young inventors opted for lubrication-free iglidur tribo-polymers.
For the bearing of pivoting and rotary applications, igus introduces iglidur J3, a lubrication-free and long-lasting tribo-polymer. The endurance runner convinces, above all, with its proven, very low coefficient of friction. As the yellowish material did not always match the design concept of the user, igus has now further developed the tried-and-tested tribo-polymer into the black iglidur J3B. But igus always has the right material for other applications as well. The intuitively operated iglidur online expert system helps with the selection.