Press Release
ContiTech
Benecke-Kaliko
Optimal Support for Asian Customers
 Benecke-Kaliko helps in measuring emissions in automotive interiors
 Comparable results guaranteed
 Bag measuring method analyzed
Hanover, April 2015. Benecke-Kaliko is also able to provide optimal support to Asian customers in
measuring emissions in automotive interiors. To ensure this, the specialist in decorative automotive
interior materials tasked its labs with analyzing the bag measuring method commonly used in Asia
and examining the factors which influence the results. By developing relevant specifications and a
uniform test configuration, it is now also possible to achieve comparable results using this method.
As a valued partner to the automotive industry, Benecke-Kaliko is committed to innovative and
sustainable products. One important issue in this regard relates to the lowest possible emissions in
a vehicle’s interior which can be measured with different methods. When the requirement is to
determine both the VOC emissions and the aldehyde/ketone emissions from the plastic materials
in a vehicle, the Asian automotive industry in particular very often resorts to bag methods. That is
because, compared with the VDA method, the bag method is less expensive since the test
equipment – the bags and the oven – are significantly cheaper than the test cabinet for VDA 276.
Whereas, for example, the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) test requires the
pollutant concentrations to be measured in a test cabinet, in Asia the samples are usually
packaged in bags and then heated in an oven. The pollutant concentration in the bag is then
measured. However, it is difficult to obtain comparable test results because all the car makers have
their own individual test specifications for the bag method, which differ to a greater or lesser extent
from the ISO 12219-2 standard.
Benecke-Kaliko has analyzed the different specifications with regard to their influence on the
result. This involved specifically varying test conditions such as sample preconditioning, oven
temperature, oven dwell time, sample size and fill volume of the test bag. “In the main, the same
qualitative results are obtained, i.e. the same substances are identified,” says Dr. Roland
Freudenmann, Global Head of Laboratories at Benecke-Kaliko, summarizing the results. However,
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Your contact:
Antje Lewe, phone: +49 511 938-1304
-2the situation is different when it comes to the quantitative results, i.e. the pollutant concentration:
These results vary greatly, depending on the different test conditions.
It’s all about the preparation
Benecke-Kaliko’s analysis showed that the preparation of the samples has the biggest influence.
“The divergence here can be as much as 2,000 percent,” emphasizes Freudenmann. The second
parameter which has a highly significant effect on the result is the oven temperature. “The VOC
emissions rise by 1,000 percent and the aldehyde emissions by 300 percent if an oven
temperature of 80°C is specified instead of 60°C,” says Freudenmann.
The tempering period of, for instance, two hours also has to be accurately observed, he added,
because the emissions results change substantially with varying times. “A variation from oven to
oven with different heating characteristics is therefore also to be expected,” Freudenmann
concludes. Changes in the fill volume and different removal rates had little or no effect in BeneckeKaliko’s labs: “Increasing the sample size from 8 cm by 10 cm to 10 cm by 10 cm has only a minor
effect on the quantitative difference in emissions.”
Although sample conditioning has the greatest influence on the measurement result with the bag
method, it is not defined at all or is only approximately defined in some specifications. “But without
a definition as in the VDA 278 method – “Seal promptly after production, condition at room
temperature in the test institute for seven days, then test” – very sizable scatter is to be expected
with all the bag methods. A common specification of, for example, seven days at room temperature
would therefore be an important prerequisite for obtaining reproducible results,” is Freudenmann’s
verdict.
Now that an appropriate test configuration has been developed and key factors defined, BeneckeKaliko is able to help its Asian customers achieve meaningful results. In addition, Benecke-Kaliko
is able to enhance the air quality in automotive interiors thanks to its innovative products such as
the low-emission Acella Eco.
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Your contact:
Antje Lewe, phone: +49 511 938-1304
-3Caption CT_BK_Bag_Method.jpg
Tang Hua in the Benecke-Kaliko lab, tracking down the factors influencing the results in the bag
method.
Photo: ContiTech
Continental develops intelligent technologies for transporting people and their goods. As a reliable partner,
the international automotive supplier, tire manufacturer, and industrial partner offers sustainable, safe,
comfortable, customized, and affordable solutions. In 2014, the corporation generated preliminary sales of
approximately €34.5 billion with its five divisions, Chassis & Safety, Interior, Powertrain, Tire, and ContiTech.
Continental currently employs approximately 200,000 people in 53 countries.
The ContiTech division is one of the world's leading suppliers of technical elastomer products and is a
specialist in plastics technology. It develops and produces functional parts, components, and systems for
machine and plant engineering, mining, the automotive industry, and other important industries. Together
with U.S. company Veyance Technologies Inc., which was acquired at the beginning of 2015, ContiTech
generated sales of approximately €5.4 billion (pro forma basis) in 2014 and currently employs approximately
41,000 people in 34 countries worldwide.
Contact for journalists
Antje Lewe
Spokeswoman
Head of Media & Public Relations
ContiTech AG
Phone: +49 511 938-1304
Cell phone: +49 160 4767260
E-mail: antje.lewe@contitech.de
www.contitech.de
Kerstin Porsiel-Voges
Head of Communications
Benecke-Kaliko Group
ContiTech AG
Phone: +49 511 938-1121
E-mail: kerstin.porsiel@contitech.de
www.contitech.de
The press release is available in the following languages: English, German
Links
Press releases and photos are available for download at www.contitech.de/press
Your contact:
Antje Lewe, phone: +49 511 938-1304