CHINAPLAS 2025: BASF and WAL Low Carbon Technology co-create advanced plastic air tank for commercial vehicles

Shanghai, China - At CHINAPLAS 2025, BASF will showcase a commercial vehicle air tank co-created with WAL Low Carbon Technology (Anhui) Co. Ltd (WAL) and made with BASF's high-performance material solution Ultramid(R) polyamide. The innovative solution achieves a weight reduction of 10-20% compared to aluminum alternatives and over 50% compared to steel versions.

Production of the air tank is also more energy efficient, since it only needs a one-piece injection molding process. This eliminates the need for secondary welding operations that are typically required for metal versions.

"Lightweighting of vehicles contributes to energy efficiency, which lowers fuel consumption and carbon emissions. The successful collaboration with BASF on this air tank project strengthens our position as a technology leader in the commercial vehicle components industry and enables us to better serve our customers' needs for high-performance and sustainable solutions," said Karl Song, Chief Technology Officer of WAL Low Carbon Technology.

Owing to the superior mechanical properties of BASF's innovative material solution Ultramid, the air tank exhibits exceptional rigidity, welding line strength and UV resistance. Combined with its high burst pressure resistance of above 50 bar (5MPa), the solution demonstrates consistent product quality and reliability in this demanding application.

"The co-creation with WAL demonstrates our ability to meet demanding high-pressure applications. This also validates the potential of our material solution to meet other automotive applications where high burst pressure resistance is required," said Eng Guan Soh, Vice President, Business Management Engineering Plastics, Performance Materials Asia Pacific, BASF.