American Kraton has developed a polymer against coronavirus

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The American company Kraton has announced that the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has granted an emergency exemption for the use of its new sulfonated polymer, which rapidly inactivates the coronavirus, said the company.

The Environmental Protection Agency has issued an emergency permit for the use of the polymer in the states of the United States, Georgia, Utah and Minnesota for specific applications to protect against the COVID-19 virus. American Delta Airlines will be the first to use this material in these states.

The material is solid but transparent and can provide long-term antimicrobial protection to surfaces with the ability to kill up to 99.99% of the COVID-19 virus in a laboratory setting. The company named this polymer line BiaXam. According to the specialty polymer manufacturer, BiaXam can provide continuous protection for up to 200 days, depending on use and cleaning methods.

The polymer can also be applied to other plastics, metals, glass, and can also be used as a film. Delta Airlines will build kiosks from this polymer in Atlanta, Salt Lake City and Minneapolis. The airline plans to expand its use at other airports. "We believe BiaXam is unique in both its performance, durability and residual properties that differentiate it from other technologies that require more frequent use or processing,” said Kraton CEO Kevin Fogarty.

"While other antimicrobial products are based on a chemical as an active ingredient, BiaXam is a polymer, and antimicrobial properties are inherent in the design of the polymer,” he added. Kraton is currently awaiting regulatory approval in other jurisdictions, including countries outside the United States.

Earlier it was reported that the American company Kraton Performance Polymers, a leading global manufacturer of styrene block copolymers (SBCs) and other complex polymer products, announced that the company changed its name to Kraton Corporation on September 14, 2016.

It was also reported that Kraton announced the release of two new styrenic block copolymers (HSBC). The new Kraton MD6951 and MD1648 resins offer high elasticity, tensile strength, and extremely low melt viscosity, giving access to a whole host of new processing areas.

Kraton Performance Polymers, Inc., comprised of the functional division of Kraton Polymers LLC and its subsidiaries, is the world's leading manufacturer of specialty polymers and styrene block copolymers (SBCs). The company's manufacturing base consists of five factories, including a central plant in Belpre, Ohio, as well as factories in Germany, France, Brazil and a joint manufacturing venture in Japan.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- ExxonMobil, one of the world's petrochemical majors, and Global Clean Energy have expanded their five-year agreement to increase ExxonMobil’s purchase of renewable diesel up to 5 million barrels per year, reported Reuters.

ExxonMobil will be the exclusive buyer of renewable diesel from Global Clean Energy’s biorefinery in Bakersfield, California, which is on schedule to begin production in early 2022. The renewable diesel leverages Global Clean Energy’s patented camelina crop, which can significantly reduce life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions.

“Our expanded agreement with Global Clean Energy reinforces ExxonMobil’s longstanding efforts to support society’s ambitions for lower-emission fuels,” said Ian Carr, president of ExxonMobil Fuels and Lubricants Company. “Through our growing relationship, we remain focused on bringing renewable fuels to market that make meaningful contributions to help consumers reduce their emissions.”

The Bakersfield biorefinery will process up to 15,000 barrels per day of renewable feedstocks, including Global Clean Energy’s proprietary camelina. The balance of renewable diesel will be produced using various non-petroleum feedstocks, including used cooking oil, soybean oil, distillers’ corn oil and other renewable sources.

The original agreement signed in August 2020 committed ExxonMobil to purchase 2.5 million barrels of renewable diesel per year. Following production startup, ExxonMobil plans to distribute the renewable diesel within California and potentially other US and international markets.

As MRC informed previously, Sinopec Engineering (Group) and ExxonMobil (Huizhou) Chemical (EMHCC) have just entered into a BEPC (basic design, engineering, procurement and construction) contract for the proposed Huizhou Chemical Complex Project (Phase I). The main units of the project include a 1.6 million tonnes/year ethylene flexible feed steam cracker, downstream polymer and derivative units and utilities. The main product units include two performance polyethylene (PE) lines and two differentiated performance polypropylene (PP) lines.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated polyethylene (PE) consumption totalled 356,370 tonnes in the first two month of 2021, down by 9% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market was 246,870 tonnes in January-February 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world"s oil and about 2% of the world"s energy.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Russia's output of chemical products rose in March 2021 by 5.4% year on year. Thus, production of basic chemicals increased year on year by 6.7% in the first moths months of 2021, according to Rosstat's data.

According to the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, mineral fertilizers accounted for the greatest increase in the January-March output. Production of benzene grew up to 121,000 tonnes in March, compared to 113,000 tonnes a month earlier.

Overall output of this product reached 362,000 tonnes over the stated period, down by 8.2% year on year.
March production of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) was 118,000 tonnes (100% of the basic substance) versus 98,400 tonnes a month earlier. Overall output of caustic soda totalled 329,400 tonnes in the first three months of 2021, down by 0.7% year on year.

2,327,000 tonnes of mineral fertilizers (in terms of 100% nutrients) were produced in March 2021 versus 2,098,000 tonnes a month earlier. Overall, Russian plants produced about 6,743,000 tonnes of fertilizers in January-March 2021, up by 12% year on year.

Last month's production of polymers in primary form was 958,000 tonnes versus 861,000 tonnes in February.
Overall output of polymers in primary form totalled 2,740,000 tonnes over the stated period, up by 8.5% year on year.

151,000 tonnes of synthetic rubbers were produced in March, compared to 141,000 tonnes a month earlier.
Overall, Russian plants produced about 447,000 tonnes of synthetic rubbers in January-March 2021, up by 10.2% year on year.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) - Imports of suspension polyvinyl chloride (SPVC) in Russia reached about 7,500 tonnes in the first three months of the year, up 134% year on year. At the same time, exports decreased by 16%, according to MRC's DataScope report.

Last month's SPVC imports to Russia increased to 4,300 tonnes from 2,700 tonnes in March. High PVC prices in the domestic market and lower export prices for acetylene PVC in China have led to an increase in imports.Thus, overall imports were 7,500 tonnes in January-March 2021, compared to 3,200 tonnes a year earlier, with PVC from China accounting for the main increase in imports. At the same time, despite rather high prices for PVC in foreign markets, Russian producers have increased export sales in favour of the domestic market.

The total export indicator for the first three months of the year amounted to about 55,400 tonnes against 48,700 tonnes a year earlier.
MRC

1. Global crude oil demand to peak several years earlier than expected - in 2026

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The rapid adoption of electric vehicles (EV) around the world is likely to cause global oil demand to peak two years earlier than previously expected, reported Reuters with reference to Norway"s biggest independent energy consultancy Rystad. World demand is now seen peaking at 101.6 million barrels of oil per day (bpd) in 2026, down from a forecast made in November of a peak in 2028 at 102.2 million bpd, Rystad Energy said. "The adoption of electrification in transport and other oil-dependent sectors is accelerating and is set to chip away at oil sooner and faster than in our previous forecast," Rystad wrote. Before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, Rystad had anticipated that peak oil demand would be reached in 2030 at 106 million bpd.



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