STRATIS ICE
Following years of development and beta testing on more than 100 yachts, including Team Korea, Secret Men’s Business, Hugo Boss, Sanya and Wally 107 Kenora, with outstanding results, the innovative Stratis ICE was officially launched to market in August 2013.
ICE is an entirely new and unique UHMWPE (Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene) fibre, developed by the Doyle Stratis NZ team following market demand for a creep free and highly durable sail membrane. Exclusively licenced to Doyle for marine use, it exhibits similar properties to high modulus carbon, and is a derivative of Spectra.
ICE provides weight reductions and elongation numbers equivalent to a sail made with 100 per cent standard modulus carbon, but without the durability issues that come with high carbon content laminates.
Results for ICE have shown the highest resistance to flex fatigue of any sail product, with ICE sails retaining their initial shape and speed longer than any other sail membrane. This allows the Doyle design team to engineer sails much closer to their work load, and avoid over-engineering them in anticipation of future flex fatigue. Overall this makes ICE the first realistic alternative to carbon in performance racing sails.
Stratis ICE Main Product Benefits
ICE has the highest creep resistance of all UHMWPE sails: half that of a Dyneema SK78 product.
ICE’s initial strength is comparable to higher strength para-aramids. However, real benefits are shown after repeated flex, where ICE hardly loses any strength in comparison to others like carbon, Kevlar and Twaron which fail.
Due to the fibre construction and unique manufacturing process of Stratis, ICE fibre is laid with zero crimp, meaning that the “apparent modulus” of the fibre is 10 to 15 per cent higher than standard modulus carbon.
