Total develops new HDPE grade for thermoforming applications

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Total Petrochemicals and Refining USA, Inc. has generated excitement in the sheet extrusion thermoforming (SET) market with the introduction of high density polyethylene grade 9825E, as per the company's press release.

This grade is well suited for shallow draw thermoformed packaging applications in the foodservice and food packaging industries that require high rigidity and toughness.

Total’s 9825E high density polyethylene delivers the stiffness needed in SET applications. The increase in stiffness gives one the opportunity to lightweight, yet still maintain the performance compared to other HDPE grades used in SET applications, or to make a product of equivalent weight, but with improved performance. Other positive attributes that 9825E offers are impact strength, chemical resistance and low water vapor transmission rate.

Total developed 9825E to be used in a broad range of thermoformed foodservice and food packaging applications. "Not only does 9825E provide improved rigidity and processability compared to other grades of HDPE used in thermoformed containers, it offers increased gloss for improved aesthetics," says Ted Harris, Marketing Manager for Total’s Polymers Americas. "Additionally, it satisfies a growing demand for materials that are widely accepted in recycling programs."

Applications well suited for the use of 9825E include drinking cups, bowls, portion cups and yogurt containers.

As MRC reported earlier, in December 2014, Total permanently shut down HDPE line in Belgium. The plant was shut permanently owing to weak margins which have arisen on account of cheap imports in the region. Located at Antwerp in Belgium, the line had a production capacity of 70,000 mt/year.

Total S.A. is a French multinational oil and gas company and one of the six "Supermajor" oil companies in the world with business in Europe, the United States, the Middle East and Asia. The company's petrochemical products cover two main groups: base chemicals and the consumer polymers (polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene) that are derived from them.

MOSCOW (MRC) -- China's Sinopec group, parent of Sinopec Corp, will invest USD29.05 billion to upgrade four refining bases between 2016 and 2020 to produce higher-quality fuels, said Reuters.

Sinopec's upgrades come as China, the world's second-biggest oil consumer, is embracing more stringent fuel standards in its battle against pollution and suffering an overall glut in refining capacity.

After the upgrades, the total refining capacity of the four refining sites will reach 130 MMtpy, or 2.6 MMbpd, while ethylene capacity will reach 9 MMtpy, Sinopec said.

The sites are in the cities of Shanghai, Nanjing and Zhenhai on the east coast and Maoming-Zhanjiang in southern Guangdong province. After the expansions, the bases will make up 45% of Sinopec's total refining capacity and 65% of its ethylene capacity.

"It's a strategic move that fits the global industrial trend for clustered and scaled growth and helps transform China's petrochemical products to medium and high quality," the company chairman Wang Yupu was cited as saying in the statement.

Between the four bases, Sinopec will be able to optimize the product structure and reduce logistics cost. Sinopec, Asia's largest refiner, started construction in December of a greenfield oil refinery and petrochemical complex in Zhanjiang that includes a 200,000 bpd refinery and an 800,000 tpy ethylene complex.

The refinery will mainly produce gasoline and diesel that meets the "national six" specificiations, up from the previous Euro V guidelines that cap sulfur content at 10 parts per million (ppm), said Sinopec in the statement.

The new plant will be geared toward producing gasoline and aviation fuel at the expense of diesel, the firm said. After the upgrades, Sinopec estimates the four sites will generate revenue of 800 billion yuan by 2020, based on USD54 a barrel crude oil prices.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- With immediate effect, or as existing contracts permit, BASF SE will increase its European selling prices for a number of petrochemical products, said the producer on its site.

Thus, March prices of the following products will be raised, as stated below:

- 1,4-Butanediol (BDO) - by EUR200/mt;
- tetrahydrofuran (THF) - by EUR150/mt;
- polytetramethylene ether glycol (PolyTHF) - by EUR260/mt;
- N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) - by EUR150/mt;
- gamma butyrolactone (GBL) - by EUR150/mt;
- N-ethylpyrrolidone (NEP) - EUR150/mt.

BDO and its derivatives are used for producing engineering plastics, polyurethanes, solvents and elastic spandex fibers. PolyTHF is a registered trade mark of BASF Group in many countries.

As MRC informed before, in June 2016, BASF increased the prices of the following polyalcohols in Europe: neopentylglycol, trimethylolpropane and 1,6-Hexanediol, as follows:

- Neopentylglycol (NPG) - by EUR80/mt;
- Trimethylolpropane (TMP) - by EUR80/mt;
- 1,6-Hexanediol (HDO) - by EUR100/mt.

Neopentylglycol (NPG) is a high-quality intermediate used, for example, to produce polyester resins for coatings, unsaturated polyester resins, lubricants and plasticizers.

Trimethylolpropane (TMP) is a high-quality intermediate that is used primarily for the production of alkyd resins, which are used in paints and coatings. It also serves to produce lubricants.

1,6-Hexanediol (HDO) is used to manufacture industrial coatings including lower volatile organic compound formulations, polyurethanes, adhesives, and cosmetics. HDO also serves as a reactive thinner in the formulation of epoxy systems, which are used for the efficient production of rotor blades for modern wind turbines, as well as construction components for automotive lightweight applications.

BASF is the largest diversified chemical company in the world and is headquartered in Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries. BASF generated sales of more than EUR70 billion in 2015.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- An agreement with Evonik Industries inked last fall complements Athlon Solutions’ water and process treating capabilities with a globally-proven product line and technical support network, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

“Evonik better positions us to serve our customers with a proven product line to address their petrochemical challenges," said Matt Forcey, Marketing V.P. at Athlon Solutions. "With Evonik’s global presence, it also gives us access to technical experts that have likely seen the challenges that our customers in the domestic US market are facing."

“The combination of Athlon’s excellence in serving customer needs and Evonik’s SiYPro performance additive solutions will create a unique force in the North American petrochemical industry," said Frank Kraushaar, V.P. of Evonik’s Polymer Additives market segment.

Under the agreement, Athlon Solutions is the distributor of Evonik’s products and provides customers in the US, Canada and Mexico with day-to-day account management, service (including engineering and technical support), and reporting. Evonik provide its specialty chemicals and backs up Athlon Solutions with technical support.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Formosa Petrochemical Corp. expects faster approval for a planned USD9.4 billion petrochemical plant in the US state of Louisiana under the administration of President Donald Trump, the company's chairman said on Wednesday, said Reuters.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is likely to roll back some of its regulations after the appointment as head last month of Scott Pruitt, who sued the agency multiple times as Oklahoma state attorney general.

The company should benefit from less stringent environmental regulations under the Trump administration, Formosa Petrochemical Chairman Chen Bao-lang said. A subsidiary of Formosa's parent company admitted to massive pollution in Vietnam last year.

"We are more optimistic about the investment," Chen told Reuters in an interview in the group's headquarters in Taipei. "At least the obstacles will be fewer... We're aiming to get an air permit in August 2018."

Formosa Petrochemical is part of Taiwanese conglomerate Formosa Plastics Group, which has production facilities across Taiwan, China, the United States and Vietnam.

Another Formosa subsidiary, Formosa Ha Tinh Steel, paid USD500 million in damages in Vietnam after it admitted last year that it polluted more than 125 miles of coastline in April, killing more than 100 t of fish and devastating the environment, jobs and economies of four provinces.

The petrochemical plant will be located in Louisiana's St. James Parish. The group first submitted its application to the Louisiana state government in September 2015.

"Trump has said his priority is the US economy first, and then environmental protection," said the chairman, who is also an executive member of the group's board. "So far everything is running smoothly."

Formosa is now hoping to start production in 2021, one year ahead of schedule, after getting the permit, he said. Formosa Petrochemical is leading the project along with another member of the group, Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp.

The first phase of the project includes an ethane cracker with an annual capacity of 1.2 MMt and 600,000 t of propylene. In the second phase, slated for construction by March 2025, it will build another ethylene plant with annual capacity of 1.2 MMt, Chen said.

The group is also expanding its US production facilities in Texas with a USD5 billion investment to increase its output of ethylene glycol, scheduled for completion in 2018.
MRC