PolyOne helps Schneider Electric satisfy global demand for sustainable light and power

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PolyOne GLS Thermoplastic Elastomers has announced its collaboration with Schneider Electric and Mobiya, a part of Schneider Electric’s Business, Investment and People for the Bottom of the Pyramid (BipBop) program, as per the company's press release.

PolyOne’s GLS Versaflex TPE was selected for several functional components in Schneider Electric’s Mobiya TS 120, a portable, solar-powered LED lamp that combines lighting and mobile phone charging.

"We are pleased to help Schneider Electric bring the basic necessity of light and power to those who need it," said Walter Ripple, vice president and general manager, PolyOne GLS Thermoplastic Elastomers. "Versaflex TPE is ideally suited for the demanding environments in which Mobiya is used, providing an ideal combination of usability, durability, and aesthetics."

"This is an excellent example of how collaboration and innovation are driving meaningful products that improve the quality of life with safe, affordable off the grid lighting," said Gilles Vermot Desroches, senior vice president Sustainability, Schneider Electric.

Versaflex TPE provides a soft-touch gripping and sealing surface for the lamp’s glow-in-the-dark, three-stage power switch as well as a cover for its mobile phone charging outlet. PolyOne worked with designers at Schneider Electric to select the material and also supported testing at the Schneider Electric R&D center in India.

For the lamp components, Schneider Electric’s designers wanted a globally available material with 'water clarity' to make it easier for users to see the glow-in-the-dark switch in pitch-black conditions. The Mobiya TS 120 also needed a material that would bounce back to original shape with repeated flexing while resisting tears and scratches. Versaflex TPE meets these needs and also complies with both the European Union Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive and stringent UL flame ratings.

As MRC reported earlier, last year, PolyOne Corporation presented its specialty portfolio for automotive interiors to designers and engineers at the 2014 WardsAuto Interiors conference. These advanced technologies, including soft-touch materials as well as colorants and special effects, enable customers to design new features that boost consumer appeal and reduce manufacturing complexity.

PolyOne Corporation, with 2013 revenues of USD3.8 billion, is a global provider of specialized polymer materials, services, and solutions. PolyOne is a provider of specialized polymer materials, services and solutions with operations in specialty polymer formulations, color and additive systems, polymer distribution and specialty vinyl resins.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Munich-based Wacker Group is presenting new binders and additives for the paint and surface-coating industries at the European Coatings Show (ECS) in Nuremberg, Germany, from April 21 to 23, 2015, reported the company on its site.

One of the highlights is the new silicone resin emulsion SILRES WH. The product which is based on a new silicone resin can be used as a hydrophobizing wood impregnating agent or as an additive in wood stains. Wood impregnated with SILRES WH is protected against damp, moisture and the subsequent damage caused by fungi and insects for an exceedingly long time.

Wacker is also showcasing a binder from its new PRIMIS line for high-value outdoor applications. PRIMIS AF 1000, the line’s first product, combines organic and inorganic components, enabling the formulation of bright, highly durable, exterior paints with reduced dirt pick-up.

At ECS 2015, WACKER will be premiering a silicone resin emulsion for wood protection coatings. Its superior impregnating effect enables long-term protection against damp, moisture and damage from moisture exposure. Marketed as SILRES WH, the product is so flexible that it even bonds to wood surfaces and thus retains the hydrophobic, i.e. water-repellent properties typical for silicones for many years. Long-term tests with impregnated wood show that the moisture and damp resistant properties of SILRES WH are fully intact after 15 years. Silicone resin additives which have been successfully used on mineral substrates for decades can now provide wood with lasting outdoor protection.

The 50% emulsion is based on a functional silicone resin and is suitable as a wood impregnant or as an additive for formulating film-forming, pigmented wood stains. Due to its hydrophobic properties, SILRES WH significantly reduces the water uptake of wood and, as a result, its moisture content. Weathering tests have shown that the silicone resin’s impregnating effect lasts for many years. Thus, wood is better protected against typical damage caused, for example, by fungi, mold and insects or by cracks due to shrinkage and swelling. It is possible to reduce the use of biocides in formulations significantly. In wood stains and coatings, even low amounts of SILRES WH provide a long-lasting hydrophobic effect.

SILRES WH produces a visible beading effect on wood surfaces. By providing wood with long-term protection, the product greatly reduces the frequency of renovation and recoating compared with conventional wood preservatives. Best results are achieved when mixing the additive with water in a 1:4 to 1:9 ratio. In water-based stains, a concentration of up to three percent SILRES WH is sufficient.

A further ECS 2015 highlight is the new PRIMIS line, comprising binders and additives for advanced, high-value paints and architectural coatings. The new line combines organic and mineral components to deliver a binder with a completely novel property profile. The elastic, acrylic ester-based, organic component performs a binder’s traditional role, offering strong adhesion and cohesion, good mechanical properties and enhanced processability. The solid mineral components, on the other hand, have outstanding protective properties and ensure long-lasting, bright colors and reduced dirt pick-up.

PRIMIS AF 1000 offers improved scratch and abrasion resistance, optimized thermal conductivity and water-vapor permeability, and simpler and more even processing. Additionally, the dispersion is characterized by excellent film formation, even at low outdoor temperatures, and by its elasticity while its surface exhibits maximum blocking resistance. The mineral components also improve fire performance. The dispersion’s good pigment compatibility and color consistency keep exterior paints bright for longer – extending renovation cycles and, in turn, positively impacting overall costs.

The new PRIMIS AF 1000 dispersion is ideal for challenging exterior applications and expands Wacker’s extensive portfolio designed for plasters and exterior coatings.

As MRC informed before, in 2013, Wacker Chemie AG officially launched its new production plant for ethylene-vinyl-acetate copolymer (EVA) dispersions at its Ulsan site in South Korea. The additional 40,000 tonnes from the second reactor line increases the site's EVA-dispersion capacity to a total of 90,000 tonnes per year. The production capacity of the site had, thus, almost doubled, making the plant complex one of the biggest of its kind in South Korea.

Wacker Chemie AG is a worldwide operating company in the chemical business, founded 1914. The company is controlled by the Wacker-family holding more than 50 percent of the shares. The corporation is operating more than 25 production sites in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. The product range includes silicone rubbers, polymer products like ethylene vinyl acetate redispersible polymer powder, chemical materials, polysilicon and wafers for semiconductor industry.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Dow Electrical & Telecommunications (Dow E&T), a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, has presented an addition of ENGAGE polyolefin elastomers and NORDEL EPDM to its portfolio, thus, expanding its system solutions offering, as per the company's statement.

Dow Electrical & Telecommunications (Dow E&T) is known for its polyethylene-based DOW ENDURANCE family of solutions for insulation, semiconductive shield and jacket compounds for UG cable constructionю

With the new addition, Dow E&T is now supplying materials for ethylene alkene copolymer (EAM) filled cables and ethylene propylene rubber (EPR) cable constructions. These same elastomers also are being used in a range of accessories that include separable connectors, splices and terminations.

ENGAGE polyolefin elastomers for EAM insulated cables exhibit improved flexibility, trainability and less spring back for ease of installation, thermal, wet and dry electrical stability, improved environmental sustainability and recyclability.

NORDEL EPDM for EPR cable constructions and accessories demonstrate flexibility for ease of installation and constrained space applications, EPR history of reliability, cost-effective, well-designed accessories.

As MRC wrote previously, in November 2014, The Dow Chemical Company announced an increased divestiture target aligned to further enhance the value of its portfolio and support the company’s market-driven, integrated strategy. On track to complete its goal of realizing USD4.5 billion to USD6 billion in proceeds by year-end 2015, and with additional portfolio management actions underway, Dow is now increasing its divestiture target to USD7 billion to USD8.5 billion to be complete by mid-2016. Since 2013, the company has generated USD2.5 billion in proceeds, reallocating this capital to remunerate shareholders, fund growth and reduce debt.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation. As of 2007, it is the second-largest chemical manufacturer in the world by revenue (after BASF) and as of February 2009, the third-largest chemical company in the world by market capitalization (after BASF and DuPont). Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene, polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SIBUR launches construction of ZapSibNeftekhim,a facility for deep hydrocarbon to polyolefin processing, on 17 February 2015, said the company in its press release.

ZapSibNeftekhim's project is designed to operate a steam cracker (by Linde AG, Germany) with a capacity of 1.5 mtpa of ethylene, around 500 ktpa of propylene and 100 ktpa of butane-butylene fraction (BBF), along with units with a total capacity to produce 1.5 mtpa of various grades of polyethylene (by INEOS, UK) and a polypropylene unit of 500 ktpa (by LyondellBasell, Netherlands).

The project is aimed at developing SIBUR’s deep processing operations, focussed on significant volumes of oil and gas exploration by-products in West Siberia, including associated petroleum gas, and import substitution of those polymers highest in demand on the Russian market.

ZapSibNeftekhim will be located on the Tobolsk production site where the Tobolsk-Neftekhim and Tobolsk-Polymer facilities are already operating. Tobolsk-Neftekhim's gas fractionation capacity has been significantly expanded specifically for the project. A raw NGL pipeline has been constructed between the Purovsky Gas Condensate Processing Plant and Tobolsk-Neftekhim, and the private Denisovka station on the Sverdlov Railway has doubled its carrying capacity.

Previously total investment in the ZapSibNeftekhim project has been estimated at approximately USD 9.5 bn, including expenditure incurred and costs budgeted for commissioning, production site infrastructure development and other activities.

Dmitry Konov, CEO of SIBUR, said: "ZapSibNeftekhim is SIBUR's key investment project. We have purposefully slowed down our project investment programme in the current economic environment to avoid the risk of significant shifts in the schedule in the future. Flexible schedule ensures that the Company can maintain financial stability in a changing economic environment, and guarantees completion of the project."

SIBUR is a vertically integrated gas processing and petrochemicals company. SIBUR owns and operates Russia’s largest gas processing business in terms of associated petroleum gas processing volumes and is a leader in the Russian petrochemicals industry. SIBUR operates 26 production sites in various regions of Russia. The Group employs 26,000 people. The Company sells its products to over 1,400 major customers engaged in the energy, automotive, construction, fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), chemical and other industries in approximately 70 countries worldwide.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - The devaluation of the rule and the growth of domestic production were the main reason of a serious drop in imports of high density polyethylene (HDPE) in January 2015. HDPE imports decreased to 13,300 tonnes in January 2015, down 32% compared to January 2014, according to MRC DataScope.

A significant devaluation of the rouble against the main world currencies, as well as the growth of the domestic production of HDPE for extrusion coating of large-diameter pipes and pipe HDPE were the main cause of a serious decline in imports. January imports of HDPE in the country decreased to 13,300 tonnes, compared with 19,500 tonnes in January 2014, and 25,400 tonnes in December 2014. Structure of HDPE imports over the reported period was as follows.

January imports of HDPE for pipe extrusion fell to the lowest in the last few years to about 922 tonnes, compared with 4,100 tonnes in January 2014, and 4,000 tonnes in December 2014. Local pipe producers because of the high price of imported material almost completely switched to Russian polyethylene; the producers have significantly increased pipe HDPE production.

January imports of HDPE for extrusion coating of large-diameter pipes were 4,600 tonnes, compared with 7,200 tonnes in January 2014, and 9,600 tonnes in December 2014. The main reason - the growth of domestic production of this type of polyethylene, in particular, Metakley produced more than 20,000 tonnes in 2014 of polyethylene.

Imports of injection moulding HDPE remained at a high level because of the small volume of production in Russia. January imports of injection moulding HDPE were 4,200 tonnes, compared with 4,400 tonnes in January 2014 and 4,900 tonnes in December 2014. January imports of HDPE for extrusion blowmoulding decreased to 2,600 tonnes compared with 3,700 tonnes in December 2014 (1,900 tonnes in January 2014).
The main reason for the decline in import volumes - low seasonal demand.

The total volume of HDPE imports in other sectors of consumption in January 2015 slightly exceeded 1,000 tonnes.


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