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Environmental and Functional Materials

Contributing to enhanced performance and safety in lithium-ion batteries
HARDLEN ® sustainable adhesive

Helping to bring on the 6G communication era
HARDLEN® leverages the strength of low dielectric properties

Kenji Shiga

Koichi Sakamoto

ManagerTOYOBO MC Corporation

TOYOBO MC Corporation

The appearance of diverse electronic devices and the accelerated development of electric vehicles (EVs) arespurring ever greater demand for lithium-ion batteries (LiBs). The electrolytes in LiBs must be tightly sealed
to prevent internal leaks. As the batteries themselves become hot, however, high heat resistance is also
required for sealing materials and adhesives. Impurities must be thoroughly removed, as their presence in thematerials used in LiBs can result in degradation of battery performance and in fires. The HARDLEN® adhesion
promoter for polyolefin handled by TOYOBO MC Corporation is an adhesive that features excellent adhesion
to polypropylene (PP) resin. With its heat resistance enhanced through the application of maleic anhydride
modification technology, it has been adopted as an adhesive for LiB sealing materials. The company achieved
supply to customers from an early stage of the growing demand for LiBs thanks to its one-of-a-kind technologies
and manufacturing processes for removal of impurities, and boasts a high market share even now.
These technologies originate in the company’s textile dyeing technologies. About 50 years ago, the resin
known as PP faced a challenge in that while it was light and convenient, it did not dissolve in organic solvents
and was thus difficult to process and dye. Toyo Kasei Kogyo Co., Ltd.* developed a technology to chlorinate PP,
dissolve it in solvent, and dye it. The company also introduced maleic
anhydride modification technology that enables precise modificationof the chlorinated PP, for free control over its physical properties.
HARDLEN® which is able to freely bond PP to other polymers, has won
strong approval in the marketplace and has grown its market shareprimarily in automotive coating applications. As a further application,
the company developed the above-mentioned adhesive for LiB sealingmaterials and has been boosting production since 2017.
LiBs are indispensable not only for EVs but also for renewableenergy storage batteries, robots, IoT devices, and more. The stablesupply of HARDLEN® which aids battery performance and safety,
will contribute to the evolution and advancement of electronicdevices.
*Merged into TOYOBO CO., LTD. in 2010

New HARDLEN® manufacturing facility at theTakasago Plant

Toyobo’s maleic anhydride modification technology and impurity removal production technology areboth without rival. Making use of these technologies, HARDLEN® boasts a strong advantage in themarketplace. We are currently conducting research and development into new applications. The terms“5G” and “6G” are commonly heard in the context of next-generation communication systems as an eraof ultra-high speed, ultra-low latency, and massively simultaneous connections rapidly approaches.
Technical hurdles remain, however, including those of materials. As an example, 6G makes use of evenhigher frequency electromagnetic waves than 5G does, but signal attenuation and delay problems arise
with the use of current materials. Prevention of these problems demands materials with lower dielectric
constants for use in components such as antennas. The key to technological innovation in this area is ourcompany’s impurity removal production technology. Adhesives designed around HARDLEN® are able toachieve a low dielectric constant. We are already supplying our low dielectric adhesives to printed circuitboard material manufacturers in the Asian region, and our development unit is rushing to develop ultra-low
dielectric adhesives for 6G that leverage the strengths ofHARDLEN® .
Multiple sensors and radar systems are also usedin autonomous driving systems and factory automation
systems, which are expected to proliferate in the future.
As high speed, high-capacity, and stable communicationinfrastructure is indispensable for the safety of thesesystems, low dielectric properties are demanded of theadhesives used in this infrastructure. Under the belief
that our business will see use in many industrial andlifestyle scenarios and that it can broadly contribute to
the safety and security of society, we undertake our workwith enthusiasm every day.
Circuit board using HARDLEN ®