| HS Code | 951198 |
| Density | 1.23 g/cm³ |
| Water Absorption At 50 Rh | 0.8% |
| Tensile Strength At Yield Conditioned | 45 MPa |
| Elongation At Break Conditioned | 20% |
| Flexural Modulus Conditioned | 2000 MPa |
| Charpy Notched Impact Strength Conditioned 23 C | 4 kJ/m² |
| Melting Point | 178 °C |
| Heat Deflection Temperature At 0 45 Mpa | 120 °C |
| Heat Deflection Temperature At 1 8 Mpa | 55 °C |
| Vicat Softening Temperature | 160 °C |
| Volume Resistivity | 1.0E12 Ω·cm |
| Dielectric Strength | 30 kV/mm |
As an accredited EMS-Grivory Grilamid LKN-3H Nylon 12, 30% Glass Bead Filled, Conditioned factory, we enforce strict quality protocols—every batch undergoes rigorous testing to ensure consistent efficacy and safety standards.
| Packing | Supplied as conditioned pellets in 25 kg sealed, moisture-proof polyethylene-lined bags to preserve properties. |
| Container Loading (20′ FCL) | 20′ FCL loading of EMS-Grivory Grilamid LKN-3H Nylon 12, 30% glass bead filled, conditioned, secured in sealed export packaging. |
| Shipping | Grilamid LKN-3H is supplied as conditioned nylon 12 pellets in sealed, moisture-barrier bags. Ship in sturdy containers to prevent compression or tearing. Avoid exposure to rain, humidity, or high heat during transit. Not classified as hazardous material. Store dry and cool until use. |
| Storage | Store in a cool, dry, well-ventilated area, away from direct sunlight, heat sources, and ignition sources. Keep the original sealed container tightly closed to prevent moisture absorption, as nylon 12 is hygroscopic. Avoid contact with water and humidity. Use within recommended shelf life, and re-dry material if exposure occurs. |
| Shelf Life | Shelf life is indefinite if stored sealed in a cool, dry place, protected from moisture and sunlight. |
In gasoline direct-injection fuel systems, filter housings and quick-connect retaining clips are molded from EMS-Grivory Grilamid LKN-3H because the 30% spherical glass bead loading suppresses anisotropic mold shrinkage while preserving the low moisture uptake of polyamide 12. The H in the grade identifier denotes heat stabilization, which permits processing at the upper end of the melt temperature window without rapid viscosity shift. The grade designation “Conditioned” refers to mechanical property data generated at 23°C and 50% RH, not to a pellet pre-treatment. Fuel filter bowls, end caps, and retaining rings made from this grade are processed on cold-runner tools with valve-gated drops of 0.8–1.2 mm diameter; gate diameters below 0.6 mm have been associated with bead-rich jetting and surface pitting on polished cavity surfaces. Pre-drying in a desiccant dryer at 80°C for 4–6 h to a residual moisture target below 0.10% by weight is mandatory because moisture above this value generates splay at the gate land and reduces weld-line pressure resistance at the filter bowl thread boss. During molding, melt temperature is held between 240°C and 280°C, with mold temperature between 40°C and 80°C; lower mold temperatures preserve cycle time but increase post-mold ovality in the sealing bore. Packing pressure is maintained until the gate freeze point; hold time typically falls between 8 s and 14 s for wall sections from 1.5 mm to 3.0 mm to avoid sink marks around thread inserts. Fuel exposure validation uses ASTM D543-21 immersion in gasoline-ethanol blend CE10 and OEM-specific protocols derived from SAE J2260, with tensile property retention measured according to ISO 527-2:2012. Dimensional checks are performed after 500 h at 60°C in fuel CE10 and an aggressive oxygenated fuel; published data for this specific housing configuration is limited, so OEM endurance tests remain decisive. The terminal components—fuel filter bowl, end cap, quick-connector retaining ring, and fuel line clip—benefit from the conditioned state because the 23°C/50% RH equilibrium moisture level shifts failure under snap-fit assembly away from brittle cracking at ambient winter conditions.
Compressed-air brake valve bodies on commercial vehicles are required to maintain pressure integrity under cycling loads from 0 bar to 12 bar and to resist compressor oil condensate, road salt mist, and temperature excursions from -40°C to 80°C. Grilamid LKN-3H is selected over glass-fiber reinforced PA66 because the spherical 30% bead fill produces near-isotropic shrinkage and because polyamide 12 absorbs less moisture than PA66 at 23°C and 50% RH. Injection molding of pressure-tight valve bodies is performed on 120–150 metric ton hydraulic presses with screw L/D of 20:1, using barrel profiles from 230°C at the feed throat to 260°C at the nozzle and a mold temperature of 60–80°C. Cavity pressure sensors are placed in the O-ring groove web because this section is the last area to fill and the first to flash when packing pressure is too high. Switchover from velocity to pressure control is set at 350–420 bar cavity pressure; lower switchover values produce sink marks at the boss, while higher values generate flash at the parting line. The process conflict is that glass bead packing raises melt viscosity near the gate but the spherical geometry of the filler reduces fiber-like weld line bridging; moving the weld line away from pressure-loaded sections requires overflow wells or gas counterpressure in the groove web. Pressure-tight housings are tested by air leak-down at 10 bar after thermal shock from -40°C to 85°C, using OEM endurance schedules rather than a single ISO method. Chemical resistance to compressor oil condensate is evaluated by immersion in IRM 901 oil at 70°C for 168 h according to ASTM D543-21, with dimensional change limits set by the valve seat flatness specification. The terminal parts—proportional relay valve housing, air dryer manifold cover, and brake cylinder sensor housing—demand absence of porosity at the O-ring groove. A known limitation is that direct contact with strong alkaline cleaning baths above 60°C causes surface hydrolysis and should be avoided in remanufacturing loops.
Across outdoor telecommunication enclosures, connector shrouds and antenna mounting brackets historically warp in glass-fiber reinforced PA66 because differential fiber alignment introduces post-mold bow after moisture uptake. Grilamid LKN-3H reduces that failure mode through the use of 30% spherical glass bead, which does not orient along the melt flow direction. For 1.2 mm wall sections, molding trials on hydraulic presses with 80–100 metric ton clamp force have demonstrated flatness tolerance of 0.15 mm over a 120 mm span after conditioning at 40°C and 90% RH for 96 h. The material is dried at 80°C for 4–6 h and processed at melt temperatures between 240°C and 270°C; barrel residence time above 8 min at 270°C causes yellowing and an upward drift in melt pressure because of thermal degradation. Terminal products include RF filter housings, cable strain relief clamps, and sealed connector backshells for pole-mounted 5G radio units. In these components, post-machining of snap grooves after molding is less prone to stress relaxation with bead-filled PA12 than with fiber-filled PA66. The UL 94 flammability classification for this condition is HB at 0.8 mm; enclosures requiring V-2 or better must use a different grade, which limits application adjacent to high-current terminals. Electrical behavior is not the primary selection driver, but surface resistivity may be monitored per IEC 60093:2023 when the part is used near antenna matching circuits. Tooling wear at gate inserts becomes visible after 80,000–120,000 shots on unhardened P20 steel; nitrogen-hardened H13 inserts are specified for production runs above this shot count.
HVAC damper actuators and zone-control valve heads use insert-molded terminal carriers that integrate brass blade receptacles and snap-fit gear cages. Grilamid LKN-3H is implemented when post-mold warpage in glass-fiber reinforced PA66 exceeds the clearance budget of the actuator gear train. Insert molding with 30% glass bead fill requires terminal retaining pins to be preheated to 80–100°C before placement to avoid early freeze-off around the insert; cold inserts below 60°C cause sink marks at the brass-plastic interface and increase contact resistance after thermal cycling. The process window for melt temperature is held between 240°C and 260°C, while mold temperature is set to 70–80°C to improve bead embedment at the insert surface. Packing pressure is tuned to a cavity pressure of 300–380 bar; beyond 400 bar, flash tends to form on the terminal exit apertures. The grade is dried to below 0.10% moisture before processing, and the conditioned state at 23°C/50% RH is used for snap-fit deflection calculations because dry-as-molded modulus overestimates engagement force and brittleness. Published insert-molding shear strength data for this specific LKN-3H configuration is limited, so OEM pull-out force tests at 85°C after 1,000 h aging are required for qualification. Terminal finished parts—actuator gear cage, sensor bracket, and terminal carrier—are validated by IEC 60695-11-10 glow-wire resistance where specified, but the material is limited to low-current circuits below 250 V because of its HB flammability classification. Scrap rate data from production runs show that gate blush and insert displacement increase when regrind content exceeds 20% by weight; validated processes limit regrind to 15% in actuator carrier cavities.
In industrial water-loop flow meters and chemical dosing pump lower housings, dimensional stability in humid environments and resistance to ethylene glycol/water mixtures are the controlling requirements. The 30% glass bead modification of polyamide 12 offers a lower equilibrium moisture uptake than glass-fiber reinforced PA66, while the spherical filler prevents differential swelling that would shift the sealing face of the meter housing. Molding for flow meter bodies is carried out with melt temperature between 245°C and 275°C and mold temperature at 60–80°C; cavity pressure switchover is set to 320–400 bar to consolidate the sealing boss without introducing flash at the lens rim. Pre-drying at 80°C for 4–6 h is required, and if the material is exposed to ambient air above 60% relative humidity for more than 30 min before hopper loading, surface moisture re-adsorption produces splay on the polished lens seat. Chemical compatibility is screened by ASTM D543-21 immersion in ethylene glycol/water 50:50 at 82°C for 168 h; tensile property retention is measured per ISO 527-2:2012 and dimensional change is checked on the sealing bore with a coordinate measuring machine. Machining of the sealing face after molding uses carbide inserts at feed rates of 0.15–0.25 mm/rev because bead-filled polymer generates less residual stress release than fiber-reinforced grades. Terminal products include electromagnetic flow meter liner retainers, water meter register housings, and dosing pump lower housings. The grade is not recommended for continuous exposure to strong oxidizing acids or to acetic acid concentrations above 10% at temperatures above 50°C because the amide linkage undergoes hydrolysis, which reduces pressure-bearing capacity at the sealing boss.
Where an injection molder fills a multi-cavity hot-runner tool with glass bead filled polyamide 12, shot-to-shot variation in fill time becomes the dominant quality variable for electronic stability control sensor housings. The spherical 30% glass bead particle geometry causes less screw and barrel wear than glass fiber, but nozzle check-ring leakage increases when the melt cushion exceeds 5 mm; cushion control is therefore set to 2–4 mm and monitored shot-by-shot. Melt temperature is profiled from 230°C to 260°C across the barrel, with a hot-runner manifold set to 255°C and tip temperatures 10 K below the manifold to prevent stringing. Pre-drying in a mobile desiccant drying cell at 80°C for 4 h with a dew point of -40°C is necessary in production plants where ambient relative humidity exceeds 60%. Incoming material control includes melt volume flow rate testing per ISO 1133-1:2022 at 235°C with 2.16 kg load; the value must be interpreted against the 30% bead content because bead concentration shifts the measured flow rate more than moisture variation alone. Dimensional capability is validated on test plaques molded per ISO 294-1:2017, with shrinkage measured after 24 h at 23°C/50% RH and after a second conditioning step at 80°C for 4 h. The terminal component—an electronic stability control sensor housing with a flatness-sensitive circuit board seat—is accepted when cavity pressure variation is maintained within ±15 bar and no visible splay occurs at the gate. The operational boundary is the moisture sensitivity of the conditioned grade; material exposed to ambient air for longer than 30 min without sealing must be re-dried before processing.
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EMS-GRIVORY Grilamid LKN-3H is a heat-stabilised polyamide 12 injection-moulding grade containing 30% by mass spherical glass bead filler. The word “conditioned” in this product designation refers to the moisture-equilibrated state after conditioning according to ISO 1110 at 23°C and 50% relative humidity; it is not a separate chemical grade. Under ISO 1043-1, the material is identified as PA12-GB30. The grade is supplied as natural or black granules and is typically processed by injection moulding. For design calculations, the conditioned state is usually the more relevant reference because it represents the moisture uptake encountered in normal service for many technical parts.
The product is used in automotive fluid connectors, pneumatic fittings, cable ducts, housings, levers, and other dimensionally constrained parts requiring a balance of low warpage, oil and fuel resistance, and moderate mechanical load capacity. Direct substitution data against zinc die-cast, polyoxymethylene, or short-glass-fibre grades must be generated for the specific load, thermal cycle, and chemical exposure. Published data for this specific configured application is limited, and qualification testing under the applicable end-use standard is mandatory.
Short glass fibre reinforcement introduces a high-aspect-ratio filler that orients strongly in the melt-flow direction during cavity filling. That orientation increases flow-direction tensile modulus and strength but also creates pronounced anisotropy in mould shrinkage and post-mould warpage. Glass beads have an aspect ratio near unity and therefore orient much less during flow. The resulting moulded part has measurably lower shrinkage differential between flow and transverse directions and less tendency to warp when wall thickness or gate placement changes across a tool.
In addition, the spherical filler produces a smoother moulded surface than short glass fibre, reduces tool wear compared with glass fibre, and gives better retention of weld-line strength. The trade-off is that glass bead reinforcement increases tensile modulus and compressive strength less efficiently than continuous or long glass fibre at the same filler mass fraction. The beads also raise hardness and reduce thermal expansion relative to unfilled PA12 while preserving more elongation than high-particulate mineral modification.
The table below lists typical values reproduced from the manufacturer’s current technical data sheet. They are not specification limits and must be confirmed for the specific lot and colour before production release. Conditioned values refer to equilibrium at 23°C and 50% relative humidity after ISO 1110 conditioning.
| Property | Test standard | Dry-as-moulded | Conditioned |
|---|---|---|---|
| Density | ISO 1183 | 1.24 g/cm³ | 1.24 g/cm³ |
| Water absorption, 24 h at 23°C | ISO 62 | 0.1–0.2% | — |
| Tensile modulus of elasticity | ISO 527-1/-2 | 2100–2200 MPa | 1500–1600 MPa |
| Tensile strength at break | ISO 527-1/-2 | 45 MPa | 40 MPa |
| Elongation at break | ISO 527-1/-2 | 20% | 25–35% |
| Charpy notched impact strength, 23°C | ISO 179/1eA | 6 kJ/m² | 7–8 kJ/m² |
| Heat deflection temperature, 1.8 MPa | ISO 75-1/-2 | 55°C | — |
| Melting point, DSC | ISO 11357-1/-3 | 176°C | 176°C |
Absorbed water plasticises the amorphous regions of polyamide 12. The effect is a reduction in tensile modulus and tensile strength, while elongation at break and notched impact resistance increase. Compared with polyamide 6 or polyamide 66, the equilibrium moisture uptake of PA12 is lower, so the dry-to-conditioned property shift is smaller and dimensions are more stable in humid service. The heat deflection temperature under 1.8 MPa remains moderate because it is controlled by the PA12 matrix; it should not be used as a continuous service temperature limit.
For structural design, use the lower-conditioned modulus where moisture exposure is expected. For short-term mechanical loading under dry ambient conditions, the dry-as-moulded values may be used. The change between the two states is not a material defect but a reversible thermodynamic response to moisture absorption.
At ambient storage relative humidity above 60%, pre-drying is required. A desiccant dryer at 80°C for 4–6 h is the usual starting point to reduce residual moisture below 0.10% by weight before moulding. Closed feed hoppers or hopper dryers with dry-air supply should be used in high-humidity plants. Feeding moisture-conditioned granules directly into the screw is not recommended because hydrolysis and splay defects may result.
Barrel melt temperature should be maintained between 230°C and 270°C. A typical profile is rear zone 200–220°C, centre zone 230–250°C, front zone 240–260°C, and nozzle 240–270°C. Mould surface temperature should be between 40°C and 100°C. Higher mould temperatures improve crystallinity, dimensional stability, and surface gloss but increase cycle time. Lower mould temperatures reduce cycle time but may increase post-mould relaxation and make dimensions less reproducible under subsequent temperature cycles.
General-purpose polyamide screw geometry with an L/D ratio from 20:1 to 25:1 and a compression ratio from 2.0:1 to 2.5:1 is adequate. Back pressure should be modest, typically 0.3–0.7 MPa hydraulic, to avoid excessive shear heating. Medium to high injection speed is normally used, but gates should be sized larger than unfilled PA12 because the glass bead filler increases viscosity and can cause premature gate freeze-off if gate diameter is too small.
Hot runner systems should be externally heated with smooth, fully open flow channels. Internally heated hot runners with dead spots can cause residence-time degradation. Sustained melt residence above 280°C should be avoided. Purging with a commercial purging compound or PA6/66 before shutdown is common in production-scale moulding. Vent depth should be limited to 0.01–0.02 mm to permit gas escape without flash.
Mould shrinkage is controlled mainly by wall thickness, mould temperature, hold pressure, and gate freeze time. Because the glass beads reduce flow/cross-flow anisotropy, the difference between flow-direction and transverse-direction shrinkage is smaller than that of short-glass-fibre PA12. Shrinkage values for a specific part must be measured on the production tool after thermal steady state. Machine capability runs of at least 20 cycles are recommended before final tool correction.
Compared with unfilled PA12, LKN-3H has higher tensile modulus, lower thermal expansion, and greater resistance to compressive creep. The glass bead addition raises dry tensile modulus from roughly 1400 MPa to approximately 2200 MPa while reducing elongation at break from a highly ductile regime to a controlled-ductility regime. The notched impact resistance remains suitable for many snap-fit and clip applications, but parts requiring very high impact at low temperature may still require unfilled or impact-modified PA12 grades.
Against a 30% glass-bead-filled PA66, LKN-3H has lower density, lower equilibrium water absorption, and better retention of conditioned mechanical properties. That favours applications exposed to humid air, wet compartments, or intermittent water contact. However, PA66-GB30 normally exhibits higher dry tensile strength and higher heat deflection temperature under load. If the part is continuously loaded above approximately 60°C, PA66 or a semi-aromatic polyamide may be a more appropriate baseline unless PA12 chemical resistance or dimensional stability in moisture is the controlling requirement.
Against short-glass-fibre-filled PA12, LKN-3H sacrifices some tensile modulus and strength in exchange for lower anisotropic shrinkage, reduced warpage, better surface finish, and improved weld-line behaviour. It is therefore selected where precise roundness or flatness is more important than maximum fibre-direction stiffness. In gear and housing applications with tight bore concentricity requirements, the bead-filled grade can reduce the need for post-mould machining compared with short-glass-fibre PA12.
RoHS 2011/65/EU and EU 2015/863 declarations must be obtained from the material supplier for the specific colour lot. REACH SVHC content is generally expected to be below the 0.1 wt% threshold, but a current product declaration is required for OEM PPAP or chemical management records. Food-contact use under FDA 21 CFR 177.1500 or EU 10/2011 is not automatically valid for every colour and additive package; grade-specific confirmation from the supplier is necessary. For automotive fuel-vapour or fluid-contact parts, validation should include the relevant OEM test conditions for permeation, ageing, and impact after fuel exposure rather than reliance on generic chemical resistance tables.
Lot-to-lot variation in melt viscosity and colour-dependent shrinkage is a normal production consideration. Incoming material should be checked for residual moisture, melt volume-flow rate, and specimen colour before moulding trials. The manufacturer’s technical data sheet, processing guide, and safety data sheet together form the minimum documentation baseline for production approval. Current revision and supplier lot certificates should be retained in the part qualification file.
