New Foam Touted as Lightweight Solution to Noise
Drew Winter Ward's AutoWorld, May 1, 2008 12:00 PM

Build a Better Mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door. Henkel Corp.'s brand new high-damping foam will not solve auto makers' weight and fuel economy woes by itself, but it is one small step in the right direction.

The product is so new, officials at Henkel's booth at the Congress didn't even have literature on it. Nevertheless, they say word has gotten around, and is generating much interest among automotive engineers searching high and low for new ways to reduce vehicle mass.

Weighing in at a mere 1.3 oz. (38 gm) in a typical application as a roof-mounted sound damper, the foam (named HDF), is many times lighter than the usual solution for “boom” and other roof-related noise, vibration and harshness problems: a tarry swatch of material known as a bitumen pad (pronounced “bitchmen”).

A typical bitumen pad easily can weigh a comparably hefty 18 oz. (520 gm), and is attached to the vehicle roof before the headliner is installed.

HDF foam also can be used inside door panels to replace bitumen pads or gobs of adhesive that are plopped in key areas to damp vibration and prevent panel flexing known as “flutter.”

Ted Hayden, business development manager, parts and foams-Henkel Adhesive Technologies, says HDF starts out as a relatively small extruded hard part that is strategically placed on a roof panel or within a door prior to the vehicle going through the paint process.

Henkel Targets Liquid Gaskets at Tech Center
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