Reduce CO2 Emissions, Increase Electric Vehicle Range with Saflex S Series Advanced Solar Interlayer

ST. LOUIS--Sept. 28, 2011: Solutia Inc. the world's leading producer of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) interlayers for laminated glass, today announced the commercial availability of its new Saflex® S Series Interlayer for automotive applications. In addition to providing traditional safety benefits of automotive laminated glazing, Saflex S series absorbs solar heat transmitted through the vehicle's glazing, which reduces air conditioning usage and improves vehicle fuel economy and CO2 emissions. Saflex S series solar absorbing interlayer is also available in an acoustic formulation as offered in the Saflex Q series product, which was introduced in 2006. The new product development is part of Solutia's emphasis to drive growth through innovative technologies and new products to meet market needs.

"Consumer demand for greener, more fuel-efficient vehicles is growing," said Tom Selm, global business management director of Solutia's Advanced Interlayers division. "However, consumer anxiety in regard to the range of pure electric vehicles and the lack of available infrastructure to charge vehicles in emergency situations is of continual concern." Simulations and analysis conducted by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) show that air conditioning use on a pure electric vehicle can reduce its driving range by 15-40 percent, depending on how often the air conditioning is used and the air conditioning unit size. NREL studies have shown that an advanced solar glazing solution, similar to Saflex S series, in the windscreen position can reduce cabin temperatures by 2 degrees to 3 degrees C, which when taking into account the potential reduced air conditioning usage, can translate into improved vehicle range when compared to a standard windscreen.

"Saflex S series advanced solar technology absorbs infrared radiation," said John Derrico, global product technology lead for Solutia's Advanced Interlayers division. "Absorbing solutions are 'signal enabling' and are compatible with wireless devices like cell phones, GPS units and electronic toll sensors."

Saflex S series solar absorbing interlayer is a drop-in windscreen solution that can also provide improved cabin comfort, fuel efficiency and CO2 emission reductions on current and new internal combustion vehicle models. Additionally, Saflex S series has completed two years of rigorous natural Arizona and Florida exposure testing, as well as five years of accelerated exposure testing to assure automotive manufacturers of the stability and weathering performance of the new product.

Additional extensions are currently in development, including combining solar absorption technology with colors for sun roof, back lites and side laminate applications.

Solutia is a market-leading performance materials and specialty chemicals company. The company focuses on providing solutions for a better life through a range of products, including: Saflex® polyvinyl butyral interlayers for glass lamination and for photovoltaic module encapsulation and VISTASOLAR® ethylene vinyl acetate films for photovoltaic module encapsulation; LLumar®, Vista, EnerLogic, FormulaOne®, Gila®, V-KOOL®, Huper Optik®, IQue, Sun-X and Nanolux aftermarket performance films for automotive and architectural applications; Flexvue advanced film component solutions for solar and electronic technologies; and technical specialties products including Crystex® insoluble sulfur, Santoflex® PPD antidegradants, Therminol® heat transfer fluids and Skydrol® aviation hydraulic fluids. Solutia's businesses are world leaders in each of their market segments. With its headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, the company operates globally with approximately 3,300 employees in more than 50 worldwide locations. .