Dyneema
WHAT IS DYNEEMA®?
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Dyneema® is an UHMwPE (Ultra High Molecular weight Polyethylene) or HMPE (High Modulus Polyethylene) fibre developed by DSM in the Netherlands some 30 years ago. Known as the world’s strongest, lightest fiber – 15 times stronger than steel, yet floats on water – Dyneema® works to stop bullets, repair human joints and improve the longevity of apparel. For Marlow, Dyneema® is an ingredient material in many of our highest performance ropes and is used across our range from kite lines to heavy lift slings. So what makes Dyneema® so special?
High Strength: On a weight for weight basis, Dyneema® is 15 times stronger than steel wire
Light Weight: Size for size, a rope made with Dyneema® is 8 times lighter than steel wire rope.
Water resistant: Dyneema® is hydrophobic and does not absorb water, meaning it remains light when working in wet conditions.
It Floats: Dyneema® has a Specific Gravity of 0.97 which means it floats in water (specific gravity is a mesure of density. Water has an SG of 1, so anything with SG<1 will float and an SG>1 means it will sink)
Chemical resistance: Dyneema® is chemically inert, and performs well in dry, wet, salty and humid conditions, as well as other situations where chemicals are present.
UV Resistant: Dyneema® has very good resistance to photo degradation, maintaining its performance when exposed to UV light
15
Times stronger than steel
8
Times lighter than steel
100
Percentage retained strength after chemical exposure
BIO-BASED DYNEEMA®
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Marlow Ropes are proud to be using bio-based Dyneema®.
This new innovation reduces Dyneema’s reliance on fossil fuels and helps us at Marlow achieve our sustainability and carbon footprint reduction targets.
Bio-based Dyneema® has identical technical characteristics and performance as conventional Dyneema® but uses waste from the pulp and timber industry as its primary raw-material.
Bio-based Dyneema is ISCC certified as sustainable and renewable via “mass-balancing”. This means that the Ethylene feedstock used to make Dyneema is transitioned from conventional petrochemical sources to sustainable and renewable sources with no change to the manufacturing process or the quality and performance of the yarn!
Therefore, any a rope made with Bio-based Dyneema® by Marlow, directly contributes to reduced CO2 emissions and has a lower environmental impact.
Every tonne of Bio-based Dyneema® we use reduces carbon emissions by 5 tonnes compared with a tonne of conventional Dyneema®••. The comparison with generic HMPE is even starker – 1 tonne of Bio-based Dyneema® produces 29 tonnes less CO2 than 1 tonne of generic HMPE*. That is equivalent to charging 3.7m Smart phones or the same CO2 offset by 480 seedling over 10 years.
photo reference: DSM N.V.
* https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/assets/downloads/Mass-Balance-White-Paper.pdf
** calculated by DSM Internal Life-Cycle Assessment
DYNEEMA® FOR YACHTSMEN
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Dyneema® is the material of choice for all serious yacht racers and at Marlow we manufacture high performance ropes for everybody from the world's top Grand Prix Racing teams to dedicated club racers. We also manufacture performance ropes with Dyneema® for Kitesurfing and windsurfing. However, ropes with Dyneema® are not just for racers - Marlow's ropes with Dyneema® also afford everyday cruising yachtsmen significant benefits as well as:
High strength: not just a requirement for top racers, allowing them to down size the diameter they use and save valuable weight. With average strengths some 130%* higher than polyester ropes, when conditions get tough Marlow's ropes with Dyneema® give you peace of mind, knowing that they won't let you down.
Light weight: all ropes can be heavy and difficult to handle. Marlow's ropes with Dyneema® are up to 28%* lighter than regular polyester ropes, making them easier and safer to handle for the whole family. The fact that ropes made with Dyneema® absorb significantly less water means that they remain easy to handle even when wet.
Low stretch: at 30% of break load, polyester halyards can stretch by 8%, affecting the set of the sail and handling of the boat. Marlow's halyards with Dyneema® eliminate this worry, allowing you to concentrate on enjoying yourself!
* figures for 10mm diameter ropes
For Marlow's yachting ropes with Dyneema® visit our Cruiser/Racer, Dinghy and Extreme Sports sections and look for the Dyneema® logo.
DSM Dyneema continues to pioneer developments with the Dyneema® fibre and our Grand Prix Series includes ropes developed using low-creep Dyneema® SK78 and ultra strong Dyneema® SK99. However, at Marlow we have taken the performance of these Dyneema® fibres to the absolute limit but developing our "D12 Max" range of products using Dyneema® SK78 and SK99. Marlow's "Max" process produces approximately 35% additional strength over an equivalent diameter standard rope with Dyneema®, making our "Max" products our strongest ropes yet.
Visit our Grand Prix Series section for more information about D12 Max and our innovative performance racing system.
DYNEEMA® FOR INDUSTRY AND WINCHES
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The use of Dyneema® is not confined only to the sailors. Ropes with Dyneema® are replacing steel wire in many varied applications and Marlow as ever are at the forefront of the Dyneema® revolution.Chief among these new applications is wire rope replacement on winches. Originally championed in the recreational 4x4 market, Marlow is now pioneering the use of Winch Lines with Dyneema® in the roadside recovery market and other industrial winching applications. The benefits of replacing steel wire with Marlow's Dynaline winch lines with Dyneema® are as compelling as they are for sailing.
Light weight: Winch ropes made with Dyneema® match steel wire for strength but offer significant improvements in terms of weight and ease of handling.
Unaffected by Water: An obvious benefit is the lack of corrosion that a winch rope made with Dyneema® exhibits. In addition, for offshore winching, the rope remains buoyancy neutal meaning that the winch only needs to lift the load, not the rope.
Unkinkable: Unlike steel wire, Dynaline will not kink and loose strength. In addition, steel wire will crush and loose strength if overlapped on a winch drum. Winch ropes made with Dyneema® will not loose strength when overlapped, crushed or kinked.
No splinters: Handling steel wire often results in wire splinters - no such issues with winch ropes made with Dyneema®.
No recoil: In the unlikely event of a ropes made with Dyneema® breaking, there is virtually no recoil, unlike steel wire where recoil is extremely dangerous.
Extensive trials have also found that Marlow’s Dynaline and D12 winch lines with Dyneema® need to be replaced less frequently than steel wire. The ease of handling, increased safety and improved longevity of Dynaline winch lines are why more and more industries are making the switch.
For more information about Marlow's winch lines with Dyneema® - Dynaline, Dynaline Max and Dynaline Plus visit our Vehicle Recovery section
For other products and applications using Dyneema® visit the following sections and look for the Dyneema® logo Event Rigging, Commercial & Utility,
Defence - Personnel Insertion / Extraction
, Defence - Towing / Recovery
Visit the DSM Dyneema website for more information about Dyneema®
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