In the severe cold regions of northern China, winter temperatures often plummet below -30℃. Traditional heating pipes, plagued by low-temperature brittleness of materials, face the risk of freezing and leaking every year, which not only affects residents' heating but also incurs huge maintenance costs. The emergence of Sinopec's domestic PB-1, with its excellent low-temperature impact resistance, provides a revolutionary material solution for heating pipes in northern regions.

A "Toughness Champion" in Extreme Low Temperatures

Sinopec PB-1 demonstrates astonishing performance in low-temperature impact resistance - its notched impact strength reaches 20kJ/m² in an extreme low-temperature environment of -40℃. What does this data mean? Compared with common PP (polypropylene) and PE (polyethylene) materials, under the same low temperature, PP has already lost its use value due to brittle fracture, and the impact strength of PE drops sharply to below 5kJ/m², which is completely unable to withstand the severe cold in northern winters.

This super strong low-temperature toughness stems from the unique molecular structure of Sinopec PB-1. By precisely controlling the isotactic content (98%-99.5%), the molecular chains of the material can still maintain a certain flexibility at low temperatures, avoiding brittle fracture of traditional plastics caused by the freezing of molecular movement. Even outdoors at minus 30 to 40 degrees Celsius, the pipes can maintain good ductility and impact resistance, calmly coping with external force collisions and sudden temperature changes in low-temperature environments.

Tailor-Made for Heating Pipes in Northern Regions

Heating pipes in northern severe cold regions are in a "world of ice and fire" for a long time: 80-95℃ hot water inside and severe cold of -20 to -40℃ outside. This drastic temperature difference places extremely high demands on the temperature change resistance of pipe materials. Sinopec PB-1 can not only withstand the long-term scouring of high-temperature hot water (long-term service temperature can reach 90-100℃) but also maintain structural stability in extreme low temperatures, perfectly adapting to the special working conditions of northern heating systems.

In practical applications, Sinopec PB-1 pipes show three major advantages:

· Strong anti-freezing and cracking ability: Even in the event of sudden cold waves, the pipes will not crack due to material brittleness, reducing the frequency of winter rush repairs;

· High installation adaptability: The material is soft and bendable, allowing on-site cutting and connection in severe cold weather, solving the problem of low-temperature construction of traditional rigid pipes;

· Longer service life: In repeated temperature cycles from -40℃ to 95℃, the performance attenuation rate is much lower than that of PP/PE pipes, with a service life of more than 50 years, the same as the building's life.

At present, Sinopec PB-1 pipes have been widely used in "coal-to-gas" heating projects in severe cold regions such as Heilongjiang, Inner Mongolia, and Xinjiang. Take a community in Hulunbuir as an example, the floor heating system using this material has withstood three winters without a single water leakage accident caused by low-temperature freezing, and the heating efficiency has increased by 15% compared with traditional pipes.

The "Frost-Resistant Gene" Forged by Independent Technology

This excellent low-temperature performance comes from Sinopec's independently developed core technology. Through the new liquid-phase bulk polymerization process and special nucleating agent modification, Sinopec PB-1 has achieved precise control of the molecular chain structure, while improving low-temperature toughness, taking into account the heat resistance and processability of the material. As the achievement of China's first 3,000-ton/year high isotactic polybutene-1 industrial demonstration plant, its technology is completely independently controllable, breaking the monopoly of international brands in the field of low-temperature weather-resistant materials.

Compared with similar imported products, Sinopec PB-1 has an impact strength 15%-20% higher at -40℃, while the cost is 15%-20% lower, truly achieving the cost-performance advantage of "higher performance and lower cost", enabling northern regions to afford and use good frost-resistant heating materials.