PRA Digital December 2021.

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A S l A ’ S L E A D l N G m aga z l ne f o r t h e p las t l c s and r u b b e r l nd u s t r y

In this issue

Volume 36, No 262

publlshed slnce 1985

A S l A’ S L E A D l N G maga z l ne f or the plastlcs and rubber lndustry

Features 10 Country Focus

Southeast Asia is progressing toward a circular economy by addressing low recycling rates and the recovery of high-value resources from plastic

14 Chemical Industry

In this report, Mark Victory, Senior Editor at Recycling, ICIS, explores the reasons for the shortfall of mono-sorted bales and the ramifications for the rest of the industry

15 Footwear

The footwear sector is walking the path of zero-carbon with collaborations on sustainability between materials and footwear manufacturers

17 Renewable Energy

Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Arthur Schavemaker Tel: +31 547 275005 Email: arthur@kenter.nl Associate Publisher/Executive Editor Tej Fernandez Tel: +60 3 4260 4575 Email: tej@plasticsandrubberasia.com

The role of low-carbon hydrogen – its benefits and drawbacks – in meeting the global climate goal agenda was highlighted at the recent COP26 summit in Glasgow, with more renewable supermajors pledging to ramp up their clean hydrogen projects

Senior Editor

21 Pipe Sector

Circulation

As the demand for sustainability gains momentum, material innovators are developing biomaterials for pipes or reducing the amount of material used in pipe technology to achieve sustainability

23 Film Technology

Angelica Buan Email: gel@plasticsandrubberasia.com

Stephanie Yuen Email: stephanie@taramedia.com.my

Permits

ExxonMobil has developed a new series of Exceed XP PE grades for stretch hood packaging, collation shrink, primary packaging, and greenhouse applications that boast “remarkable” mechanical performance

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2 Industry News 6 Materials News

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Supplements IMA Electronics: Electro-technology advancements provide manufacturers with far more options for meeting consumer needs IMA Automotive: Electric vehicle (EV) growth has jumped by an astronomical 140% in 2021, Thailand and Indonesia are poised to be EV hubs in Asia IMA Machinery: Machinery makers at the Fakuma show, held in Friedrichshafen, Germany, were finally able to meet face-to-face, and also launch new machines Glove Sector: The focus on workplace safety, epidemic management, and infection control is driving up consumption for rubber gloves PRINT/DIGITAL www.plasticsandrubberasia.com

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On the Cover Over the coming decades, it is expected that clean hydrogen will be a hot ticket solution for achieving long-term sustainability and carbon neutrality

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is published 4 (four) times a year in English by Kenter & Co Publishers’ Representatives BV. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the information contained in this publication is correct, the publisher makes no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the nature or accuracy of such material to the extent permitted by applicable law. © 2021 Kenter & Co Publishers’ Representatives BV No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or used in any form, or by any means, without specific prior permission from the publisher.

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DECEMBER 2021

1

Industry News

M&As/Tie-ups/ Investments • Japan’s Toray Industries will invest US$375 million in Toray Industries Hungary (THU), a 100% subsidiary of Toray engaged in manufacture of battery separator film. Toray and South Korea’s LG Chem each will hold a 50% interest.

• German materials firm BASF and SVOLT are partnering with regards to cathode active materials (CAM) development and battery recycling for SVOLT’s battery cells.

• US-based adhesive tape specialist CCT Coating & Converting Technologies Inc. has become part of water-based specialty adhesive tapes manufacturer ATP Adhesive Systems Group based in Switzerland.

• EnPro Industries, a US-based industrial technology company, has sold its polymer components business to Ohiobased Edgewater Capital Partners, a private investment firm focused on performance materials.

• US food service firm Pactiv Evergreen Group Holdings is to acquire FabriKal, a manufacturer of foodservice and consumer brand packaging solutions, for US$380 million.

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DECEMBER 2021

• Polytek Development Corp, a manufacturer of specialty polymers for coating, mould making, and casting applications, has acquired Specialty Resin & Chemical, a supplier of mould making, casting, and coating products, including epoxy resin and PU resin. Polytek is a portfolio company of Arsenal Capital Partners.

• Italy’s chemical firm Versalis, an Eni company, is to buy the remaining 60% shares of Italian compounder Finproject, following the acquisition of a 40% stake in 2020 from VEI Capital.

Versalis has also acquired on an exclusive basis the technology and plants of Ecoplastic, an Italian company of the De Berg group specialising in the recovery, recycling and transformation chain of styrenics.

• Five companies – Continental Structural Plastics (CSP), Inapal Plásticos, Benet Automotive, CSP Victall and Teijin Automotive Center Europe (TACE) – have come together under a single brand to form Teijin Automotive Technologies, a supplier of composite materials and solutions for the worldwide mobility industry.

• Packaging firm Alpla Group is acquiring BTB PET-Recycling, based in Bad Salzuflen.

Alpla is also taking over Plastisax, a Spanish company producing plastic bottles for the cosmetics, home and personal care segments.

• South Korea’s DL Chemical, a subsidiary of DL Holdings Co (formerly Daelim Industrial Co), will acquire 100% of US-based Kraton Corporation, a producer of specialty polymers and biobased products derived from pine wood pulping co-products, for US$2.5 billion. Last year, Kraton sold its Cariflex business, which makes the natural rubber substitute polyisoprene, to DL for US$530 million.

• Safic-Alcan, a distributor of specialty chemicals, has acquired 100% of Rit-Chem Co. a boutique chemical distributor specialising in the performance and life science sectors in the US. • Russian petrochemical firms Sibur and TAIF have merged to form a combined entity that will leverage the facilities of PJSC Sibur Holding. The value of the merged company is estimated at US$26.8 billion and it will be Russia's largest petrochemical

producer and one of the top five global polyolefin and rubber producers.

• US chemical firm Hexion Holdings Corporation is separating into two independent companies through an IPO and spinoff of its epoxy business. The two companies will be Hexion Holdings (adhesives and versatic acids) and Hexion Coatings and Composites (HCC), composed of Hexion’s former epoxybased coatings and composites products.

HCC will be renamed at a later date.

• US processor TekniPlex Healthcare has acquired Mexican precision extrusion manufacturer Johnson Plastic Group to expand the company's patient care solutions platform.

• US-based PolyQuest Inc, a distributor of PET resins and manufacturer of recycled PET resins, has formed Renuva Plastics, which will acquire the US division of the Faith Group, a distributor of post-industrial thermoplastics and PET. • Private equity firm Lone Star Fund XI has completed the acquisition of specialty resins and solutions firm AOC from compatriot private

INDUSTRY NEWS equity firm CVC Capital Partners.

• Milliken & Company has acquired microencapsulation provider Encapsys from the Cypress Performance Group.

• Subsea oil/gas firm TechnipFMC has completed the acquisition of the outstanding shares of Magma Global, a provider of composite pipe technology, from UK-based polymer firm Victrex.

• Plaskolite, North America’s largest manufacturer of engineering thermoplastic sheet and profile products, will acquire all the assets of Plazit-Polygal, an Israeli pioneer in the manufacturing of engineering thermoplastic sheets.

Plaskolite is owned by Pritzker Private Capital, along with the Dunn family, management and other co-investors.

• Germany’s Biesterfeld Group is acquiring a majority stake in Singapore-based GME Chemicals, a distributor of specialty chemicals and polymers that was set up in 1999 and is represented through subsidiaries in Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and China.

• US-based Vertellus, a manufacturer of specialty products for consumer goods, food & agriculture, healthcare, and industrial markets, has completed its acquisition of IM Chemicals, the intermediates and specialties division of ESIM Chemicals

and a provider of specialty chemical products serving the pharmaceutical, coatings, and fuel & lubricant markets.

• Due to differences on a business strategy, Japan’s Mitsui Chemicals and South Korea’s SKC Co. are dissolving the joint venture agreement for Mitsui Chemicals & SKC Polyurethanes, a subsidiary that combines the two parent companies’ operations in PU raw materials.

• Global Healthcare Opportunities, a European specialist investor in global healthcare, has invested in Germanybased Sanner Group, a supplier of active packaging solutions and components for

the pharmaceutical, diagnostic and medtech sectors.

• US private equity firm Core Industrial Partners has formed a new additive manufacturing platform and completed the acquisitions of 3DXTECH, Triton 3D and Gearbox3D. • Schütz GmbH, a manufacturer of transport packaging, has acquired Irish manufacturer of jerrycans and drums, GEM Plastics.

• Sweden’s Nefab Group has acquired US-based thermoformed cushioning provider Reflex Packaging Group.

• Avantus Aerospace has divested two US-based structural

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Industry News

composites companies: Performance Plastics and Angeles Composite Technologies to US private equity firm JW Hill Capital. It also sold SDM Composites to France’s Groupe Latécoère.

• Specialty colour and additives supplier Chroma Color Corporation has acquired J. Meyer &

Sons, a manufacturer of colour concentrates and masterbatches for the medical and pharmaceutical markets.

• Specialty chemicals business Arxada, formerly known as Lonza Specialty Ingredients that is owned by private equity funds Bain Capital and Cinven, is combining with

Troy Corporation, a supplier of microbial control solutions and performance additives.

• US materials firm Eastman Chemical Company is selling its adhesives resins business to UK polymer firm Synthomer for US$1 billion. The sale consists of hydrocarbon resins (including Eastman

Impera tyre resins), pure monomer resins, polyolefin polymers, rosins and dispersions, and oleochemical and fatty-acid based resins product lines.

• Germany’s ASK Chemicals Group has completed the acquisition of the industrial resins business from US-based SI Group.

Plant Expansions/Capacity increases/Set-ups • Spanish materials maker Repsol has selected Univation Technologies’ Unipol PE Process for its 300,000-tonne/year PE plant to be located at Repsol’s Industrial Complex in Sines, Portugal.

• Dubai-headquartered specialty and packaging films maker Taghleef Industries has installed a custom Davis-Standard liquid coating line at its facility in Indiana, US, to support new markets in coated OPP films.

• Invista Nylon Chemicals (China) plans to double its PA6.6 polymer production at Shanghai Chemical Industry Park.

Following a 40,000tonne/year capacity increase in 2020, this new US$230 million investment will increase capacity to 400,000 tonnes/year.

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DECEMBER 2021

• Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical will expand its production capacity for highpurity chemicals for semiconductors at its Ehime Works, Japan, and increase capacity by 40% for high-purity ammonia water at the Iksan Plant of Dongwoo FineChem Co, a wholly owned subsidiary in South Korea.

• Finnish materials maker Stora Enso’s EUR10 million pilot facility for producing biobased carbon materials from lignin has started up.

• Cap/closure maker United Caps has opened its new Dinnington factory in Rotherham, UK. • US compounder Teknor Apex has completed its 50,000 sq m facility in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany, which increases its

capacity of custom compounds and establishes a new European technology centre for plastics R&D. • Speciality chemicals firm Nouryon has started production at a new manufacturing facility located at its site in Ningbo, China, to meet increasing demand in Asia for polymers used in the packaging, paints and coatings and construction endmarkets.

• Total Corbion PLA’s plant in Rayong, Thailand, has, since its opening in 2019, reached a production volume of 100 kilotonnes of Luminy PLA. The plant is now running at name plate capacity of 75 kilotonnes/year to meet the demand for PLA bioplastics.

It is also to build a second 100 kilotonnes/ year PLA plant in

Grandpuits, France, which will be the first of its kind in Europe.

• Chemical firm Sabic has started its new PP compounding line in Genk, Belgium, in addition to its existing production capacity for PP compounds. It will use raw materials from Sabic’s PP plants in Germany and the Netherlands.

• Forward AM, the brand of BASF 3D Printing Solutions, has opened a new additive manufacturing centre in Michigan, US, in cooperation with Michigan State University.

• France-based enzymatic solutions company Carbios has opened an industrial demonstration plant on the Cataroux site in Clermont-Ferrand, operating with its C- ZYME enzymatic recycling technology.

INDUSTRY NEWS • German materials firm Covestro is building a methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) plant following its suspension on the building of a 500,000-tonne/year MDI plant in Texas at the beginning of 2020.

The location is under review with China mooted as a potential alternative to the US. It is also planning to expand its toluene diisocyanate (TDI) production by de-bottlenecking facilities in Germany, expected to be completed by 2023.

• Chemical giant Dow plans to build the world's first net-zero carbon emissions integrated ethylene cracker and derivatives site with respect to scope 1 and 2 carbon dioxide emissions. The project would more than triple Dow's ethylene and PE capacity from its Alberta site in Canada, while retrofitting its existing assets to net-zero carbon emissions.

• US firm ExxonMobil is building a 500,000tonne/year advanced recycling capacity facility in Texas, to start up by year-end 2022. Its initial trial of its proprietary process for converting plastic waste into raw materials has successfully recycled more than 1,000 tonnes of waste.

• French materials firm Arkema is constructing a PA11 powders plant on its Changshu platform in China, scheduled to come on stream in 2023.

• German speciality chemicals firm Lanxess is expanding its production capacity for light- colour aminic antioxidants at its Taiwan site by several kilotonnes by 2022.

• Japan’s Teijin Limited’s carbon fibre subsidiary Renegade Materials Corporation, a US-based supplier of highly heatresistant thermoset prepregs, resins and adhesives for the aerospace industry, will expand its prepreg production by 2.5 times at its Ohio location, by 2022.

• US-based Ingevity Corporation is increasing its caprolactone monomer capacity by over 20% at its facility in the UK. • Finnish renewable energy firm Neste is setting up a R&D centre in Singapore, to be fully operational from 2023 onwards.

Neste and Ravago are also establishing a joint venture to build an industrial facility for chemical recycling in the Netherlands.

• BASF Petronas Chemicals, a joint venture between

BASF and Malaysian Petronas Chemicals Group, is expanding the capacity of 2-Ethylhexanoic Acid (2-EHA) from 30,00060,000 tonnes by 2024. BASF has also opened a new R&D facility at Ansan, Korea’s Engineering Plastics Innovation Centre (EPIC).

• Evonik Industries is expanding its capacities for organic dispersions for heat sealing applications in Darmstadt (Germany).

Evonik has also set up a new 400-sq-m laboratory at its Essen Goldschmidt site in Germany for PU additives and processing aids for a variety of PU applications.

It is also increasing the production capacity of several additives (Tego Glide/ Tego Wet) at its site in Shanghai, China.

• Indonesian petrochemical firm Chandra Asri has tied up with Saudi Arabia's state- controlled Aramco Trading to explore potential feedstock supplies for its planned Chandra Asri Perkasa (CAP2) petrochemical complex. CAP2 comprises a 1.1 milliontonne/year naphtha cracker capable of producing up to 1.1 million tonnes/year of ethylene and 600,000 tonnes/year of propylene.

• Swiss materials supplier EMS Group will increase production capacity for polyamide specialties at its production sites in Germany and Switzerland over the next two years.

• Additives manufacturer Baerlocher will increase capacity of its calcium-based PVC stabiliser in the UK by more than 50% by 2022.

• Austrian packaging maker Alpla Group is building a 23,000-sq-m manufacturing plant in Kansas, its fourth site in Missouri, US, and the first for packaging systems, bottles, caps and injectionmoulded parts. It will be completed by 2022.

• Gail India has selected Lummus Technology’s Catofin process and Clariant Catalysts’s tailor-made catalysts for India’s first 500-kilotonne/ year propane dehydrogenation facility, integrated with a downstream PP unit.

The US$1.2 billion project is to start operations by 2024.

• Australian mining firm Pilbara Minerals and South Korean chemical/energy firm Posco Chemical, a subsidiary of steel maker Posco, are to develop a US$750 million 43 kilotonne/ year-lithium hydroxide conversion facility in South Korea.

DECEMBER 2021

5

Materials News

Advancing recycling to tackle plastic circularity The uptake of chemical recycling is on the rise since it offers an increased recycling rate, and higher value product output, says Angelica Buan in this report.

T

he amount 300 million tonnes isn't just a number; it's the amount of plastic waste produced annually around the world. To make matters worse, the amount of waste generated is expected to increase by 3.4 billion tonnes by 2050, a consequence of growing urbanisation, population, and economies.

What will happen to this waste is now up to us.

Regardless of whether the recycling infrastructure has improved or expanded, research still finds that only about 20% of waste is recycled each year, with vast amounts still being dumped in landfills.

Finding a long-term, sustainable solution to waste plastic has been elusive for a long time. The proliferation of green initiatives has, in many cases, failed to deliver the promised targets, while conventional recycling and reuse strategies have not been able to recover the material value of plastic waste.

Now, the notion of plastic circularity has been provided with some sort of a solution whereby using effective recycling processes, the recovery of high-value products, such as oil, gas, and chemicals, is a possibility.

Chemical recycling, also known as advanced recycling, has been compared to mechanical recycling, and which WoodMac says is the best option to recover value from end-of-life plastic by converting it into other usable, even food-grade applications.

Pyrolysis is a chemical recycling process that breaks down longer chain polymers into shorter chain materials by heating plastic waste without oxygen. These products can then be processed further into chemicals or fuels.

Pyrolysis can recycle low-quality plastic waste that cannot be recycled using traditional mechanical recycling methods. Additionally, pyrolysis does not degrade the final plastic's quality and requires less intensive waste sorting.

Hence, chemical recycling’s ability to increase recycling rates is sufficient justification for its implementation in order to promote sustainability.

Partnerships on chemical recycling A c c o r d i n g t o a r e p o rt b y Wo o d M a c K e n z i e , t h e sustainability of the plastic value chain is dependent on how the sector manages plastic waste. It recommends boosting investments in chemical recycling, as doing so might raise recycling rates by 50% by 2040.

Neste and Ravago are establishing a chemical recycling facility in Vlissingen, North Port

Only about 20% of waste is recycled each year, with vast amounts still being dumped in landfills, according to studies

6

DECEMBER 2021

Thus, a number of tie-ups have been seen, with two leading European companies, Neste and Ravago, joining forces to focus on chemical recycling. The partners stated that their goal is to increase global processing capacity and catapult the joint venture into a global leader in chemical recycling of mixed plastic wastes.

The joint venture between Neste, a Finnish renewable oil refining company, and Ravago, a Belgian plastics producer, will establish a chemical recycling facility, with a processing capacity of about 55,000 tonnes/year of mixed plastic waste, and intended to be the starting point of joint global chemical recycling activities, in

Materials News Vlissingen, the Netherlands’ North Sea Port. The plant will be built upon US-based Alterra Energy's thermochemical liquefaction technology.

Elsewhere, Anglo-Dutch gas/oil company Shell’s corporate venture arm and BlueAlp Holding have formed partnership to develop, expand and deploy BlueAlp’s plastic waste to chemical feedstock technology, which has already been developed to a commercial scale. The technology transforms tough to recycle plastic wastes into a recycled feedstock, such as pyrolysis oil that can be used to make sustainable chemicals.

Shell's goal of recycling 1 million tonnes/year of plastic waste in its global chemicals plants by 2025 will be aided by this investment.

Blue Alp/Shell’s joint venture will build two new conversion units in the Netherlands under the terms of the agreement, with Shell taking a 21.25% equity stake in BlueAlp. To start-up by 2023, these units are expected to convert more than 30 kilotonnes/year of plastic waste and supply 100% of the pyrolysis oil as feedstock to Shell's Moerdijk and Rhineland crackers.

Shell, which has had a successful pilot using pyrolysis oil at the Moerdijk petrochemicals plant since August 2021, along with increased use of recycled feed at its Norco petrochemical complex in the US since November 2019, is looking to licensing two more units for use in

BlueAlp and Shell have teamed up to develop, expand, and deploy BlueAlp's plastic waste to chemical feedstock technology

Asia to supply the Shell Energy and Chemicals Park in Singapore.

From plastic grocery bags to jet fuel Demonstrating the efficiency of hydrocracking technology to convert plastics to fuel, Washington State University researchers have devised a novel method for converting plastics into compounds for jet fuel and other valuable hydrocarbon products. At moderate temperatures, their

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Materials News method was able to transform 90% of plastic into these compounds. Processing conditions can also be fine-tuned like adjusting the time, temperature or amount of catalyst used to create desired products.

Funded by the Washington State Research Foundation and the National Science Foundation, the innovation, which was published in the journal Chem Catalysis, used a catalytic process to efficiently convert PE waste to jet fuel and high-value lubricants within an hour at a temperature of 220°C, which they claim is more efficient and lower than temperatures that would be typically used.

The researchers, led by graduate student Chuhua Jia and associate professor Hongfei Lin in the Gene and Linda Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, stated that they are working to commercialise this breakthrough technique.

M e a nw h i l e , r e s e a r ch e r s f r o m C a l i fo rn i a S t a te Polytechnic University say that plastic grocery bags can also be a viable resource for fuel. Pyrolysis, or the thermochemical decomposition of carbon-based matter in the absence of oxygen, was utilised to heat- convert the plastic to a vapour, which then met a catalyst and transformed into the desired fuel-like product. Their work has been published in the Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy by AIP. Mingheng Li, one of the study's authors, explained that the catalyst is important in this pyrolysis process since it just takes one step to get to the required fuel product at relatively low temperatures.

Li explained that the catalyst was prepared by immersing a zeolite substrate in an aqueous solution containing nickel and tungsten and drying it in an oven at 500°C. The synthesized catalyst was used with a labdesigned, single-stage pyrolytic reactor that ran at a specified temperature of 360°C to degrade a variety of plastic supermarket bags.

Other organic wastes, old motor oil, and municipal solid wastes could potentially be processed using the catalytic process to produce useful energy products.

The researchers' next steps will be to explain the breaking mechanism that occurs on the surface of the catalyst and to optimise diesel fuel production from diverse mixed plastic waste.

Levelling up on recycled waste for circular polymers US-based Dow Chemical has taken plastic circularity to the next level by recycling waste plastics into feedstock oil for the production of circular polymers. This is in line with its recent announcement of its advancements to reduce plastic waste, cut carbon emissions, and provide customers with recycled plastic products that perform similarly to fossil fuel- derived virgin plastics.

Dow's collaborations include the ones it has with Dutch pyrolysis company Fuenix Ecogy Group, Dutch energy company Gunvor Petroleum Rotterdam, US-based environmental technology company New Hope Energy, and UK-based recycling technology company Mura. All

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DECEMBER 2021

Dow is expanding its Fuenix deal with the construction of a new plant that will convert 20,000 tonnes of waste plastic into pyrolysis oil feedstock for Dow's Terneuzen facility

of these will enable Dow to begin supplying fully circular polymers to customers in 2022.

With Fuenix, Dow is expanding its initial agreement with the company, which began in 2019 to scale circular plastics production through advanced recycling, by building a second plant in the Netherlands that will process 20,000 tonnes of waste plastic into pyrolysis oil feedstock, which will be used to make new plastic at Dow's Terneuzen site.

Dow’s collaboration with Mura supports the rapid scaling of its new HydroPRS (Hydrothermal Plastic Recycling Solution) advanced recycling process. The world's first HydroPRS plant is under construction in the UK, with the first 20,000-tonne/year line expected to be operational in 2023.

Recently, Dow tied up with Gunvor to purify pyrolysis oil feedstocks derived from plastic waste and beginning in 2021, Gunvor will supply cracker-ready feedstock to Dow. To ensure that the pyrolysis oil feedstocks are of sufficient quality to produce new polymers, the purification process is required.

Meanwhile, Dow and New Hope Energy, a company that converts used plastics into pyrolysis oil feedstock, agreed to a multi-year supply agreement for pyrolysis oil feedstocks.

In the meantime, Dow is expediting the design, engineering, and construction of a purification unit in Terneuzen to provide additional capacity to purify pyrolysis oil feedstock derived from plastic waste.

Materials News Sustainable packaging material promises lower carbon footprint German chemical firm BASF is also advancing the pyrolysis technology, as evidenced by its ChemCycling project. The company, also a co-founder of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, cooperated with Quantafuel and Remondis this year on chemical recycling of wastes and joint investment on a pyrolysis plant. The German firm also acquired US-headquartered Zodiac Enterprises, which recycles precious metals from industrial scrap to expand its chemical catalyst recycling and capability.

Meanwhile, Styropor EPS (expandable polystyrene) was recently chosen by Europe's largest home appliance manufacturer for its packaging needs. BSH Hausgeräte GmbH will use Styropor BMB, which is made from chemically recycled (Ccycled) plastic waste, as a packaging material for selected large appliances from its luxury brand Gaggena.

BSH is initially testing the packaging at its Dillingen production site in Germany, and plans to expand its use for all large appliances globally.

Pyrolysis oil has simply replaced fossil raw materials in the production of packaging foams that have become so well-known over the last 70 years. The oil is extracted by BASF's partners from plastic waste that would otherwise be used for energy recovery or disposed of in landfills.

At the start of the value chain, BASF uses the required amount of oil to make new plastics.

Because recycled and fossil raw materials are mixed in the manufacturing process and cannot be distinguished, the recycled portion is assigned to Styropor Ccycled using a mass balance approach. Ecoloop, an independent certification programme, has certified both the allocation process and the product itself. When compared to conventional Styropor, the production of Styropor Ccycled packaging saves at least 50% of CO2, says Ecoloop.

In the future, BASF and BSH intend to strengthen their collaboration by looking into the use of alternative raw materials.

For its home appliance packaging, BSH Hausgeräte uses BASF's Styropr EPS, which is made from chemically recycled (Ccycled) plastic waste

Country Focus

Southeast Asia rises to the circular economy challenge Low recycling rates and recoverability of high-value resources from plastic wastes are major roadblocks for circular agendas of countries in the Southeast Asian region. One country that is taking the leap is Malaysia, says Angelica Buan in this article.

ASEAN pushed to recycling goals Southeast Asia, or the ASEAN, is not an outlier in the global circular economy movement. Indeed, the circular economy, along with security and trade cooperation, is usually at the forefront of issues at regional meetings. But making the circular economy agenda successful is a different story.

The region, which is a large consumer and producer of petroleum-based plastics, has to meet its recycling goals, simply because the growing volume of municipal solid waste (MSW), primarily from households, commercial and industrial sources, and other human activities, is becoming too much to handle.

Of the ten countries in the ASEAN bloc, Indonesia is estimated to generate the highest quantity of MSW with 64 million tonnes/year, followed by Thailand at 26 million tonnes and Vietnam at 22 million tonnes. The Philippines,

ASEAN, a large consumer and producer of petroleum-based plastics must meet its recycling goals by increasing recycling rates

10

DECEMBER 2021

Malaysia, Myanmar and Laos generated between nearly 8-15 million tonnes/year, according to data published in the Waste Management in ASEAN countries report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2017.

As it stands, sanitary landfills and open dumps are the most common forms of waste management. Recycling rates in the region are falling short of targets, owing to inefficient disposal methods and the lack of recycling infrastructure and technologies. It’s not surprising that viable materials from recycled plastics aren't recovered.

An initiative, the ASEAN Regional Action Plan (RAP), launched in May this year as a response to mismanaged plastic wastes and marine debris, calls for more drastic measures to improve collection, reduce plastic inputs into the system, prevent leakage of plastic scraps into the environment, and create value for waste reuse.

The action plan proposes for guidelines to phase out single-use plastics (SUPs), harmonise regional policies on recycling and plastics packaging standards, and improve regional marine debris monitoring.

Billions of missed opportunities from waste A recent dismal finding is that only roughly 25% of plastics available for recycling in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand are recycled into valuable materials, including SUPs that are discarded rather than recycled, according to a World Bank report.

As a result, more than 75% of the material value of plastics has been lost, amounting to US$6 billion per year in the three countries.

The recent World Bank report, on the situation of marine debris in Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines, is framed in the context of the economic opportunities in plastic circularity.

The report states that this is not only a waste of natural resources and a missed opportunity for local industries, but it's also a significant missed opportunity for these countries to improve their trade balance by creating jobs and earning foreign

Country Focus

About 25% of plastics available for recycling in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand are recycled into valuable materials; the rest are discarded rather than recycled

exchange through the export of recycled plastics and other materials.

The recommendations in the report involve ramping up the sorting efficiency of post-consumer plastics collection, setting recycled content targets across all major end-use applications, implementing "design for recycling" standards for plastics, especially for packaging, and encouraging higher recycling capacities.

Going the full circle with PET bottle recycling PET plastic is a common packaging material for essential consumer products such as food and beverage, personal and household care, and others that are commonly purchased by households in Southeast Asia because it is convenient and lightweight.

In 2020, about 2.12 million tonnes of PET bottles were consumed by five countries in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, according to the World Wide Fund (WFF)’s Plastic Packaging in Southeast Asia and China report.

The bad news is that when these PET bottles reach the end of their useful lives, they will be discarded.

On the other hand, beverage giant Coca-Cola says recycling PET bottles can greatly benefit the environment and economies, in its report titled Full Circle: Accelerating the Circular Economy for PostConsumer PET bottles in Southeast Asia, Prepared by Singapore-based research firm GA Circular, the Coke report articulates on how plastic recycling reduces the need for new plastics, shrinks landfill use and incineration, encourages the development of innovative plastic-derived products, and curbs pollution. The resins or pellets made from recycled post- consumer PET bottles can be used to make new bottles and containers, as well as packaging and fibres.

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07.10.2021 14:05:52

Country Focus

Over 2 million tonnes of PET bottles were consumed by five countries in Southeast Asia in 2020

Six countries: Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Myanmar, accounted for 3.8% or 880,000 tonnes of global PET bottle consumption, and contributed about 29% of total plastic leakage into the oceans, the report said.

By the year 2030, PET bottle consumption in these countries could reach 1.52 million tonnes.

Yearly, an estimated 660,000 tonnes of PET bottles are dumped in landfills or leak into the environment, resulting in a loss of US$199 million.

According to the report, PET bottle collection rates for recycling are on average 54% at the city level (based on nine representative cities) and 26% at the national level in the six countries.

As a result, the report emphasises the importance of focusing on systemic solutions to drive circularity, recommending the implementation of an industry-led PRO (Packaging Recovery Organisation). The latter is focused on boosting the value chain by implementing a price incentive that also benefits the informal sector, which is the backbone of PET bottle collection in these countries.

Other solutions focus on material end markets; improving packaging design to optimise the economics of recyclability; and for governments to create circular economy policies and standards, such as food-grade recycled content guidelines, recycled content targets, and source separation and separate collection.

Malaysia helms materials recycling/recovery agenda A growth sector in Malaysia, the plastics manufacturing industry is supported by 1,300 plastic manufacturers and accounted for 4.7% of its GDP in 2018. It meets the insatiable demand for plastics from a wide range of industries, including automotive parts, household and consumer goods, packaging, construction materials, and medical devices.

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DECEMBER 2021

As intoned in the 2021 World Bank report on Malaysia’s plastic market, the country recycled only 24% of key plastic resins in 2019. It is, thus, not on track to meet the National Solid Waste Management Department or Jabatan Pengurusan Sisa Pepejal Negara (JPSPN) recycling target of 40% by 2025, owing to mismanaged plastic waste and insufficient recycling infrastructure.

Based on the JPSPN's 2013 Survey on Solid Waste Composition, Characteristics and Existing Practice of Solid Waste Recycling in Malaysia, which has become a vital basis for monitoring the country's progress toward recycling targets, Malaysia's recycling rate was 9.7% in 2012, with more than 21.6 tonnes of waste generated: both discarded and recyclables.

Malaysia is on track to meet its recycling targets despite obstacles such as a lack of infrastructure and waste mismanagement

The East Coast (cities of Kuantan, Kota Bahru, and Besut) represented the highest recycling at a rate of 11.4%, followed by the Southern region and Klang Valley at 10.6% and 10%, respectively.

What influenced recycling activity, according to respondents, was public awareness in recycling; availability of recyclers to buy the recyclables; and the volume of recyclables capable of being collected. For the traders, middle men and buy back centres, an unstable market demand and price instability, affect recycling activity.

The plight on recycling has since improved.

From 2017-2019, recycling rates, specifically for plastics, had steadily increased, as per a study conducted by the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp).

The agency is pushing for a recycling rate of 40% by 2025, up from the national waste management office's proposal of 30% recycling and 40% waste reduction to landfills in 2020.

Country Focus Based on data from the Ministry of Housing and Local Government or Kementerian Perumahan dan Kerajaan Tempatan (KPKT), about 1 million tonnes of plastics were recycled in 2019, followed by nearly 1.5 million tonnes the following year.

Waste-to-energy, chemical recycling and EPR targets To reach its circular economygoals, Malaysia is proposing reforms to boost its recycling mechanisms, including the formation of integrated Waste-to- Energy (WTE) management facilities, the use of biodegradable technologies that include anaerobic digestion, aerobic enzymes, and black soldier flies; and reinforcing the extended producer responsibility (EPR).

EPR is a policy tool that holds companies responsible for the end-of-life effects of their plastic products and packaging. In addition, policymakers expect biobags to be introduced in the coming years, bolstering the country's ability to obtain value-added renewable feedstock like biofuels, biochemicals, and biopellets, as well as eco-products made from recyclables.

Nevertheless, Malaysia needs to invest more in an efficient waste management infrastructure, from recyclable material collection to chemical recycling and WTE mechanisms for nonrecyclable plastic waste, according to a white paper published in 2019 by the Malaysian Plastics Manufacturers Association (MPMA) and Malaysian Plastics Recyclers Association (MPRA).

Making progress, the country has built its first WTE plant, the SMART (Solid Waste Modular Advanced Recovery and Treatment) in Negeri Sembilan, which was developed in a public-private partnership with KPKT by Cypark Resources Bhd. In addition, the company is currently negotiating on two more WTE projects in the states of Johor and Malacca.

Meanwhile, recent advances in chemical recycling are proving to be a viable alternative for plastic waste that is difficult to recycle or cannot be recycled using traditional methods.

Plastic Energy Ltd and Petronas Chemical Group (PCG) have agreed to work together on a feasibility study to build a facility to convert plastic waste into an optimal feedstock (Tacoil) to produce recycled virgin-quality plastics from low-quality, mixed plastic waste that would otherwise end up in landfills and incinerators.

Furthermore, the partnership would give PCG access to Tacoil for use in its polymer production at the Pengerang Integrated Complex's petrochemical unit.

These efforts, according to MPMA and MPRA, will support Malaysia in transitioning away from low-value, low-technology mechanical recycling, or primary recycling, as a source of resin pellets and toward higher-value feedstock.

To produce higher-value recycled feedstock, with upgrades in equipment and technology, recyclers could potentially increase their contributions to the Malaysian economy by three to four times, from RM15 billion to RM20 billion annually, cited MPMA and MPRA.

Malaysia has built its first WTE plant, the SMART, developed

by Cypark DECEMBER 2021

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Chemical Industry

Chemical recyclers using other feedstocks to avoid competing with mechanical

By Mark Victory - Senior Editor, Recycling at ICIS

T

he increased use of partially sorted 90% mixed polyolefin bales by the mechanical recycling sector is pushing pyrolysis-based chemical recyclers towards other feedstocks to avoid competing with the mechanical recycling chain.

Pyrolysis-based chemical recyclers are increasingly investigating the use of PVC-screened reject bales, which currently predominantly serve the refuse-derived fuel (RDF) market, to avoid direct competition with the mechanical recycling sector.

Although there is an absence of comparable life cycle assessments (LCAs) that can show the environmental impact of chemical recycling compared with mechanical recycling, virgin production and alternatives, it is broadly agreed that mechanical recycling has a lower environmental impact than chemical recycling.

Because of this, many chemical recyclers aim to avoid material that can be efficiently used in mechanical recycling to ensure that the processes are complimentary.

In 2021, mechanical recyclers have been increasingly using mixed polyolefin bales – typically with a minimum 90% polyolefin content - because of a shortage of sorted monomaterial polyolefin bales,. These are the same mixed-plastic waste bales that chemical recyclers have, until now, predominantly been sourcing.

• An extended construction peak season due to delays to project completion dates • Ambitious sustainability targets from the packaging sector, which go beyond what is available at current Mark Victory examines the reasons collection, sorting why mono-sorted bale supply is and reprocessing tight and the knock-on effects this capacity will have for the wider industry With polyolefin bale shortages expected to last at least into 2022, mechanical recyclers sourcing mixed polyolefin bales is unlikely to prove a temporary phenomenon, until sufficient additional collection and sorting infrastructure is built.

The shift in mechanical recycling purchasing patterns is causing pyrolysis-based chemical recyclers to explore other mixed-waste bale grades, with RDF reject bales a primary focus.

Along with tight PVC tolerances, pyrolysis-based chemical recyclers also typically aim to limit PET content in a bale – because it needs transesterification to depolymerise and because it produces oxygen in the reaction – as well as nylon and flame retardant content.

As a result, they prefer lighter-fraction waste, which broadly matches what is currently being sent to RDF. Limiting chlorine content in RDF-suitable reject bales is becoming more challenging for waste managers due to the increased presence of PVC content and the rising use of polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) in products such as films and cheese trays.

At the same time, downstream tolerances are becoming stricter, with bales for RDF use needing to contain below 1% chlorine and bales for pyrolysis typically targeting chlorine content below 0.1% to prevent corrosion.

"The move to alternative feedstocks is being aided by a relaxation in specifications for pyrolysis oil.."

There are a variety of reasons why monosorted bale supply is tight, including: • Substitution of virgin in the first half of the year due to shortages in that market • Changing virgin plastic packaging material choices, the impact of COVID-19 on sorting centres • Structural shortages of collection and sorting capacity • Projects delayed by the onset of the coronavirus pandemic • Additional demand ahead of the introduction of plastic packaging taxes in Spain, Italy and the UK in 2023

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DECEMBER 2021

Chemical Industry The move to alternative feedstocks is being aided by a relaxation in downstream petrochemical industry specifications for pyrolysis oil and an increased understanding that a purification stage will be needed at the refinery stage, several chemical recyclers said this week.

A relaxation in pyrolysis oil specifications allows chemical recyclers to widen the potential input feedstock. Historically, purity specifications for pyrolysis oil have needed to match virgin specifications.

Although this is expected to increase demand for this type of bale moving into 2022, it is yet to have an impact on prices in the market, which remain at broad parity with September levels.

Because of the cost of sorting, PVC-screened bales suitable for RDF typically sell at a positive value compared with materials recovery facility (MRF) reject bales, which companies are paid to take away but may contain a variety of contaminants, including

non-plastics, and require onwards sorting. These typically trade at negative values.

PVC-free bales are currently trading at below €100/ tonne ex-works Europe, while MRFs continue to pay €90150/tonne ex-works NWE (northwest Europe) to have bales removed. The price MRFs will pay for unsorted bale removal is largely dictated by savings against gate fees and local disposal taxes.

Unsorted bales are typically used for burn-for-energy, but commonly require on-site sorting facilities to ensure the removal of PVC. Because small items fall through the gaps in traditional sorting, some players estimate that there is as much as 70% usable polyolefins content in burn-forenergy reject bales and this is encouraging industry investment in sorting lines at incineration units to extract the usable waste – particularly for thermal depolymerisation use.

Legislation penalising waste incineration is expected to intensify in the coming years across Europe.

Footwear

Footwear goes green The footwear sector is seeing a number of sustainable tie-ups between materials and footwear manufacturers.

Getting on with CO2-emissions foam for footwear partnership with LanzaTech and Borealis. LanzaTech is Swiss sports brand On is moving away from using a combination of genetic engineering, artificial petroleum-based resources by creating a new intelligence, and innovations in mechanical and foam material called CleanCloud, made using chemical engineering to manufacture chemicals using carbon emissions as a raw material. On is the first a process that soaks up carbon rather than emitting it. company in the footwear industry to explore carbon emissions as a primary raw material for a shoe bottom unit, specifically EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) foam, which could also be used in other shoe parts and products in the future.

On says it is convinced that innovation is pivotal to cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

CleanCloud is the result of four On is the first company in the footwear industry to explore carbon emissions as a primary raw material for a shoe bottom unit years of work and a DECEMBER 2021

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Footwear Meanwhile, chemical firm Borealis also has circular and renewable plastic solutions to create easy-to-process EVA foam for CleanCloud.

This is how it works: Technology from LanzaTech captures carbon monoxide emitted from industrial sources like steel mills or emissions from landfill sites before being released into the atmosphere.

Once captured, these emissions enter a patented fermentation process.

Thanks to specially selected bacteria, the carbon-rich gas ferments naturally and is converted to liquid ethanol by the bacteria. This natural fermentation process is similar to that of conventional alcohol production – e.g., beer brewing.

The ethanol is then dehydrated to create ethylene, which is then polymerised by Borealis to become EVA (a copolymer of ethylene vinyl acetate) – the lightweight material that On starts working with to create a performance foam for shoes.

The overall goal is to exchange all bottom units from On shoes currently made from EVA with CleanCloud. This includes the whole Cloud range, THE ROGER franchise collection and a part of the active lifestyle assortment.

Outdoor sports shoe from biobased/recycled materials German materials supplier Covestro and VAUDE, a family-owned manufacturer of outdoor equipment and footwear, have collaborated to develop a partially biobased foam midsole for VAUDE’s new Lavik Eco outdoor hiking boot. It is based on thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) foams from Covestro’s Desmopan EC 33000 series, which use non-GMO raw materials. The durable foams are said to meet the outdoor brand’s Green Shape criteria without sacrificing performance.

"With the new Lavik Eco, we want to introduce our first biobased outdoor shoe in the 2022 summer collection and the first outdoor sports shoe ever in

which all components are made from more than 50% biobased and recycled materials," explains Clément Affholder, Innovation Manager at VAUDE. The Lavik Eco shoe is scheduled to be available in stores as a men's and women's model from spring 2022.

The midsole is a crucial element in a hiking boot: it must be pleasantly soft and comfortable, but also provide a firm grip and have excellent cushioning properties.

"TPU has already proven itself as a durable and supportive material in midsoles for active footwear such as mountain boots. However, in this soft and hard material combination, it has not been produced with non-GMO raw materials before," says Sayma Hou, Key Account Manager Footwear at Covestro.

Together with VAUDE, Covestro has identified and tested start-up raw material supplier Metabolic Explorer, which can supply bio-based 1,3-propanediol, a building block in the production of polymers from palm oil. The fact that the chemical raw material is not genetically modified also played a role in the evaluation.

The Desmopan EC series for the midsole and beyond is characterised by high abrasion resistance and flexibility over a wide temperature range, as well as high elasticity in various degrees of hardness.

The series offers waterproof qualities as well as oil, grease, and solvent resistance and stands up well to weathering and high-energy radiation. Compared to fossil-based TPUs, the EC series can reduce the carbon footprint by more than 20% without compromising on quality or performance.

The outdoor manufacturer has already been using partially biobased TPUs from the Desmopan EC series for its TRK Skarvan hiking boots since 2018. In these more sustainable shoes, the bioplastic provides protection in the toe cap against injury from stones in the front of the foot and added stability from the heel cap in the back.

Green Shape is the VAUDE label for functional and environmentally friendly products made from more sustainable materials.

The manufacturer is focusing on more environmentally friendly alternatives to petroleum-based raw materials, the increased use of recycled materials and materials derived from natural fibers such as hemp and organic cotton, and the use of biobased plastics from nonGMO sources.

Covestro and VAUDE have jointly developed a midsole for VAUDE's Lavik Eco hiking boot, based on partially biobased and nonGMO TPU foams

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DECEMBER 2021

Renewable Energy

Zeroing-­in on climate neutrality with hydrogen Recent efforts highlighted at COP26 2021 (United Nations Climate Change Conference) raised hopes that it may be possible to achieve the global 1.5°C climate limit using hydrogen technology, according to Angelica Buan in this report.

T

here may not be a silver bullet to carbon neutralising the world but major economies already have their policies set on adopting clean hydrogen (H2) energy as soon and as widely as possible.

While it is renewable, efficient, and produces no harmful emissions, it can be costly to produce, flammable, and difficult to store and transport.

However, proponents of H2 believe that these obstacles can be overcome.

To reshape the global energy system, the government and industry will need to work closely together.

Clean H2 deployment will be accelerated if policymakers develop a solid investment and action framework.

Global demand for renewable and hydrogen energy green hydrogen is projected

Hydrogen to help reduce global carbon to increase by 50% in the next decade by over 20% The development of the hydrogen economy is energy technologies like renewable power, biofuels, critical for cost-effective and efficient global carbon and energy efficiency improvements, according to reduction, allowing nations to reach their carbon the Hydrogen for Net Zero report by the Hydrogen neutrality targets, stimulate green economy, and Council and McKinsey & Company. create long-term jobs, according to the Hydrogen The report stated that clean H2, which has an Council. The latter is a global CEO-led initiative of “annual abatement potential” of 7 Gt in 2050, could 123 companies from over 20 countries and across provide the “lowest-cost” decarbonisation solution the entire hydrogen value chain, which promotes for over a fifth of final energy demand by midH2 as a means of accelerating the clean energy century, resulting in a total reduction of 80 Gt CO2, transition. and is thus a critical solution for achieving the 1.5°C Global demand for renewable and low-carbon climate scenario. This will necessitate a large scaleH2 could increase by 50% in the next decade. In up of clean hydrogen production in the coming 2050, China will be the largest hydrogen market, decades, or a tenfold increase over the currently followed by Europe and North America, accounting installed 2.8 TW of H2 capacities will be required. for roughly 60% of global demand. The potential The report added that H2 rollout will not be emission reductions for H2 in 2030 could be feasible without the right regulatory framework in 800 million tonnes/year of CO2 emissions, the place, with governments and businesses to take organisation said. action. A set of appropriate policies is included Clean H2 is the only long-term, scalable, and in the requirements, such as mandates and cost-effective option for deep decarbonisation strong carbon pricing, large-scale infrastructure in sectors like steel, maritime, aviation, and development, and de-risking and focused support ammonia, and it augments other low-carbon for large initial investments.

DECEMBER 2021

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Renewable Energy This would cut CO2 emissions by more than 14 million tonnes/year.

Meanwhile, the pledges amount to more than 18 million tonnes/ year of lower-carbon hydrogen on the supply side. If grey hydrogen, natural gas for industrial heat, and petroleum fuels in transportation are replaced, CO2 emissions will be reduced by 190 million tonnes/year.

Run-down of investments for partnerships, technology acceleration Some renewable super majors at the COP26 The COP26 summit in Glasgow brought together world leaders to discuss the event agreed to ramp environmental agenda, including the use of low-energy technologies like clean hydrogen up clean H2 production and use. With an initial investment of more than A tall order for countries EUR2 billion, Spanish renewable energy company In November, world leaders met in Glasgow, Acciona Energia has entered a joint venture with Scotland, for the COP26 (Conference of the Parties) Plug Power with the goal of achieving a 20% market summit. The 26th annual United Nations Climate share in the renewable hydrogen business in Spain Change Conference aimed to come to agreement and Portugal by 2030. on how to reach the Paris Agreement's global Anglo American, a British multinational mining temperature limit of 1.5°C. It also emphasised the company, is developing green hydrogen (GH2) importance of low-energy technologies such as clean technologies, including the world's first 2,000 KW hydrogen in making it happen. hydrogen fuel cell-powered mine haul truck and Already, 28 companies from mining to energy, green hydrogen production at its mine sites. vehicle and equipment manufacturers, and financial services have pledged to accelerate the use of Furthermore, by 2030, it will convert all of its dieseldecarbonised hydrogen at the COP26, according powered trucks at these sites to GH2 power. to the World Business Council for Sustainable UK oil/gas company BP aims to contribute to Development (WBCSD) and the Sustainable Markets the output of at least 500 kilotonnes/year of new Initiative (SMI). The companies are also signatories low/ultra-low carbon hydrogen in core markets by to a new initiative called H2Zero, which focuses on 2030, with up to 50% ultra-low carbon hydrogen accelerating the use and production of H2 as an integral part of the future BP is working on a project that is claimed to be the largest in the UK, producing up to 1GW of blue hydrogen net-zero energy system.

The pledges in three categories – demand, supply and financial or technical support, correspond to nearly a quarter of the decarbonisation potential for hydrogen by 2030.

On the demand side, the pledges – which total 1.6 million tonnes/ year of lower-carbon hydrogen – are primarily directed at replacing grey hydrogen, which is currently widely used in the refining, chemical, and fertiliser industries, as well as diesel fuel in heavy industries like mining.

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DECEMBER 2021

Renewable Energy coming from Enel, which has started its coal phase-out process since 2017, vows to produce only renewable sources. renewable hydrogen Some of the new production will be used in the firm's European refineries to replace natural gas-based SMR-grey hydrogen. There will be more than 50 hydrogen refuelling stations supplying low carbon and renewable ultra-low carbon hydrogen, with an initial focus in Germany and the UK. Hong Kongbased CLP, one of Asia's largest The company, which developed the clean investor-owned power companies, reiterated its hydrogen and ammonia technology, RH2, and Climate Vision 2050 to provide net-zero electricity the TarT sour-gas treatment system, recently supply to its customers. It plans to transition its partnered with JX Nippon Oil & Gas natural gas generation units to run on "low carbon Exploration Corporation to accelerate global hydrogen" in the 2030s and 2040s as part of this decarbonisation of power and hydrogen commitment. generation.

US-headquartered global hydrogen supplier Enel, an Italian multinational renewable Cummins is increasing its electrolyser production energy company with 50.8 GW of renewable capacity to 2 GW by 2030 to enable GH2 installed capacity and a target of tripling it to production. It also plans to boost production 145 GW by 2030, has vowed to produce only capacity to meet market demand for fuel cell renewable hydrogen, with a capacity of 2 GW power modules and components, as well as of electrolysers by 2030. The company stated continue to invest in R&D to develop new that its coal phase-out process began in 2017 hydrogen products. and that it expects to be totally free of coal in In May, it announced a partnership with Italy by 2025 and globally by 2027. Enel has Iberdrola, a Spanish energy company, to build plans to close or convert 43 power plants in one of the world's largest electrolyser plants for Europe and Latin America. the production of green H2 in Castilla-La Mancha, Engie, which has a Net Zero by 2045 Spain. The plant will split water into hydrogen and agenda, targets to develop 4 GW of renewable oxygen using Cummins' electrolyser technology. hydrogen production by 2030 to deliver low or For its part in the GH2 pledge, Iberdrola is ultra-low carbon hydrogen. making strides in GH2 development, with projects Equinor, a Norwegian energy company in Spain, the UK, the US, Brazil, and other countries that provides clean hydrogen in three to to meet the demand for electrification and five major industrial clusters and aims to decarbonisation in industries. supply 10% of the European market for EDP, a Portuguese energy company, has stated clean hydrogen by 2035, has pledged that all that it will be coal-free by 2025 and entirely green projects it brings online by 2030 will deliver by 2030, and that it will invest in more than 1.5 GW low-carbon or ultra-low carbon hydrogen. of renewable hydrogen by that time.

Meanwhile, with a recent MOU signed with US-based 8 Rivers Capital is to commercialise Korean East-West Power (EWP) to collaborate a novel ultra-low carbon hydrogen process on 3 GW of offshore wind projects in South technology capable of delivering clean, industrial Korea, the company has contributed to South scale hydrogen at a price that will enable natural Korea's goal of increasing renewables by 60 gas displacement, and will further drive the GW by 2034, of which 12 GW is targeted for deployment of at least 435 kilotonnes/year of ultraoffshore wind by 2030. low carbon hydrogen by 2030.

DECEMBER 2021

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Renewable Energy UK-based ERM (Environmental Resources Management), the world's largest pure-play sustainability consultancy, plans to produce 500 MW of ultra-low carbon hydrogen by 2035 through the ERM Dolphyn, a first-of-its-kind integrated system combining all of the technologies required to bring the latest floating wind and hydrogen production technologies together.

Australian iron ore major Fortescue plans to produce 15 million tonnes/year of GH2 by 2030 and allocate 10% of its profit to fund renewable energy growth. It has also signed agreements with JC Bamford Excavators and Ryze Hydrogen to supply GH2 to the UK; Universal Hydrogen in the US to supply GH2 to power regional and other aviation sectors until 2035; and Jordan and Papua New Guinea for GH2 projects.

UK energy storage and clean fuel company ITM Power is investing £0.4 billion in GH2 to boost its electrolyser production capacity from 1 GW to 5 GW/ year by 2024, to reduce the total cost of electrolysis by 50% by 2030.

Another UK company Riversimple Movement is mass-producing what it says will be the world's most environmentally-friendly fleet of vehicles that will require green hydrogen. The total cumulative hydrogen consumption is expected to be 10 kilotonnes by 2030, with a minimum of 90% coming from zero-carbon renewable sources. The sustainable car company plans to operate a fleet of 250,000 vehicles in the UK by 2040, with H2 demand of 27 kilotonnes/year.

Anglo-Dutch petrochemical firm Shell has committed to using “better hydrogen” in its chemical parks by 2030. By 2030, the company wants to produce 75 kilotonnes/year of ultra-low carbon hydrogen and 100 kilotonnes/year of reduced carbon hydrogen.

French oil and gas company TotalEnergies is headed towards using renewable hydrogen to replace all grey hydrogen consumed in its European refineries by 2030. Also by that year, Yara, a Norwegian fertiliser and environmental solutions company, plans to source and/or produce a minimum of 3 million tonnes of reduced carbon ammonia (equivalent to 530 kilotonnes of reduced-carbon hydrogen), with a minimum of 50% low-carbon or ultra-low-carbon ammonia.

Biofuels and renewable energy producer Yosemite Clean Energy is focused on delivering its first portfolio of carbon negative-renewable hydrogen from waste biomass (carbon intensity score of -56 or better) that will be produced at three production facilities currently under construction in California, US, and scheduled to begin production in 2024.

The three hydrogen projects are designed to minimise GHGs by eliminating an estimated 402 kilotonnes/year of CO2, and reduce the use of diesel fuels by an estimated 19.5 million/year.

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DECEMBER 2021

Putting costs to rest The development of GH2 as a component of the global energy system is hampered by two factors: supply uncertainty and a lack of demand commitment.

Institutions and companies, including the Bank of America (BofA), Hinicio, Johnson Matthey, Linde, Siemens Energy, Snam and Yokogawa, have affirmed their support of investments, regulatory schemes, and advanced technologies for expanding the hydrogen market at the COP26, which in the long term could potentially bring costs downs.

Green hydrogen is more expensive at US$38/kg than the fossil-fuel based grey hydrogen costing around to US$0.50-1.70/kg, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The UAE-based treaty organisation and the World Economic Forum (WEF) proposed solutions to the cost issue that may be jeopardising GH2 expansion.

A new report, Enabling Measures Roadmap for Green Hydrogen, developed by IRENA, WEF and consultancy Accenture outlined several objectives in areas like cost reduction, demand growth, international standards, infrastructure, and technology development for GH2 implementation.

These objectives include: • Deploying mechanisms that close the cost gap for hydrogen use in hard-to-abate sectors • Driving critical mass demand through major hydrogen projects project; and efficient allocation of capital within Europe and for imports • Reducing fossil-fuel consumption through mandates and obligations • Ensuring early ramp up of ‘no regret’ infrastructure safety standards for project development; clarity on carbon intensity standards through a guarantee of origin scheme; setting clear carbon intensity, definitions, thresholds, boundaries for hydrogen production and ensuring member states, EU and exporters — both inside and outside the EU — use the same methodology and scope for carbon intensity • Hyperscaling electrolyser development and removing barriers to growth; and focusing innovation and R&D to enable technology scaleup” The report, which is expected to serve as a toolkit for energy players and policymakers, may appear quite technical to the 7.9 billion global population that is said to benefit from a healthy environment, and considering its cons may even raise a few questions about whether we are on the right track of fully entrusting our energy future to GH2.

Regardless, we'll never know unless we try.

Pipe Industry

Pipe sector pushes envelope for sustainability With the imminent pressure on the plastics sector for sustainability, materials makers are introducing biomaterials for pipes, or the use of less material in pipe technology.

Sabic introduces new PO pressure pipe technology With the urgent need for more durable and reliable as well as cost-efficient and sustainable pipe systems to meet the potable water and sanitation needs of an ever-growing global population, chemical firm Sabic has developed a new BiAx pipe technology and range of dedicated PE and PP resins. These are said to mark a significant leap forward in the performance profile of polyolefin pressure pipes.

BiAxPIPE

BILLET

Sabic has developed a new range of PE and PP resins that offer improvements in key performance properties for biaxially stretched pressure water pipes

Together with Italian pipe manufacturing equipment specialist Tecnomatic and German PPR pipe systems supplier aquatherm the technology is being advanced from concept to reality.

Since the introduction of polyolefins for pressure pipes, continuous efforts have been made to improve the performance levels and expand the application scope of polyolefin pipes. Sabic says it has now succeeded

in optimising the formulation of dedicated PE and PP resins for biaxial stretching that will allow manufacturers to boost the key properties of pressure pipes to unprecedented levels. The new resins in combination with the BiAx stretching technology will enable a new generation of lighter and stronger as well as energy and cost-efficient pipe systems.

The new technology is said to offer improvements over incumbent polyolefin pipes across the entire range of performance criteria. Higher resistance against internal pressure enables wall-thickness reduction and thus can reduce material use by at least 30%.

In addition, the smooth inner wall surface reduces the energy required for pumping. The technology renders the pipes more abrasion resistant and prolongs their lifetime. Combined, these characteristics provide a major leap forward.

The new PE and PP pipes promise better resistance to disinfectants, a lower coefficient of linear thermal expansion (CLTE) and improved low-temperature impact strength.

As part of these joint efforts, Tecnomatic has installed a fully integrated continuous BiAx pipe extrusion line for evaluation, trials and optimisation of the process. On this line, pipes are first conventionally extruded with thick walls and small diameters, then drawn over a heated mandrel and stretched in two directions to obtain larger diameters and thinner walls.

This gives them their characteristic BiAx properties.

Another partner in this project is aquatherm and it is targeting to introduce Sabic’s advanced biaxially oriented pressure pipe technology in a wide range of diversified application areas.

The photo shows an integrated system from Tecnomatic for continuous BiAx pipe extrusion, with dedicated new high-performance PE and PP resin formulations from Sabic DECEMBER 2021

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Pipe Industry Pipe system with renewable raw material Ultra Rib 2 Blue is a new generation of PP sewer pipes with a significant carbon footprint reduction, achieved thanks to its composition of over 50% of raw material coming from certified renewable feedstock.

The pipe is a collaboration between Swedish pipe maker Uponor and materials supplier Borealis, which supplies its Bornewables, a portfolio of circular polyolefin products manufactured with renewable feedstocks.

The specifications of Ultra Rib 2 Blue are the same in terms of properties and performance as the standard Ultra Rib 2. The pipes are manufactured at Uponor's ISCC PLUS (International Sustainability & Carbon Certification) certified factory in Fristad, Sweden. As part of this certification, customers receive a sustainability declaration of the amount of renewable raw material in their delivery of Ultra Rib 2 Blue following the mass balance approach.

Uponor and Borealis have introduced the Ultra Rib 2 Blue, which is based on Borealis Bornewables consisting of over 50% renewable The raw material, reducing the reduction carbon footprint in CO2 footprint by up to 70% is achieved by partially

replacing fossil feedstock with renewable feedstock, unsuitable for human consumption (waste and residue streams), and traceable back to the first collection points. The chain of custody created by the ISCC PLUS certification makes that Borealis’ Bornewables portfolio and Uponor’s Ultra Rib 2 Blue meet the sustainability standards of ISCC PLUS. Furthermore, the partners add that data transparency is at the core of Ultra Rib 2 Blue and the Uponor Blue sustainable offering line. To help organisations to meet their sustainability goals, the products are backed with independently verified data.

"We are pleased to collaborate with Borealis to create a plastic pipe with up to 70% reduction in carbon footprint. We are delivering on our promise to offer the highest quality now in a sustainable product.

Our customers can be confident they are making the right decision for the future of our environment," says Sebastian Bondestam, President of Uponor Infra.

Robin Bresser, Head of Marketing, Pipe at Borealis, adds, “The Bornewables portfolio represents a key step in our efforts to offer products decoupled from fossil-based feedstock, with the aim of providing a solution to the climate challenge.”

GF introduces bio-attributed PVC As a pioneer of pressure piping, GF Piping Systems (GF) has announced the introduction of bio-attributed materials to all of its polyvinyl chloride (PVC-U)

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DECEMBER 2021

metric pressure pipes, fittings and valves produced in Europe. The sustainable PVC resin, made using tall oil, a waste product from paper production, will see up to 90% reduction in the CO2 emission during production versus conventional PVC while still maintaining the highest quality, durability, and recyclability, the company adds.

The PVC piping systems from GF, first produced in 1955, have been tried and tested for more than 65 years. Today, they include pipes, fittings, valves, actuators, and measurement and control technology used across industries in over 100 countries for GF’s label for the new, the most demanding applications. bio-attributed To achieve the biggest impact, the PVC products PVC resin used for pipes, fittings and valves is successively adjusted to use up to 20% bio-attributed PVC. The sustainable PVC resins meet the same stringent performance criteria as GF's conventionally produced PVC grades. To verify the correct use, an independent certification body is appointed to audit the production plants and supply chain which processes the bioattributed PVC-U. "With the introduction of bio-attributed PVC into our material mix, we are transitioning toward more sustainably sourced products," announces Jens Frisenborg, Head of Business Unit Industry/Utility at GF Piping Systems. "By adding renewable raw material, with identical chemical and mechanical properties, to our valves, fittings and pipes, we provide our customers with unrivalled quality, while also supporting them in achieving their own sustainability goals."

Insensitive, flexible to plan, easy to install, and reliable: these properties of piping systems are Jens Frisenborg, Head of in demand in numerous BU Industry/Utility at GF industrial areas: in Piping Systems, adds that the company is transitioning drinking water treatment, toward more sustainably microelectronics production, sourced products in sewage treatment plants, in shipbuilding, and the food industry.

GF adds that PVC piping systems are suitable for use in almost every branch of industry, saying “it is not only their durability that makes them so versatile but also their easy installation”. Now with bio-attributed PVC, GF concludes that it is ensuring they are more sustainably sourced.

Film Technology

ExxonMobil’s latest Exceed grades exceed performance levels

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S firm ExxonMobil says it has developed a new series of Exceed XP performance polyethylene (PE) grades that deliver “remarkable” mechanical performance with a combination of low density and fractional melt index (MI).

Exceed XP 7021 and Exceed XP 7052 offer the value chain a combination of attributes that is currently not available in a single resin. This includes high levels of elasticity and holding force, puncture energy (up to 2.3 J/mil) and dart impact resistance (up to 900 gm on a 25.4 micron film).

The grades are targeted at stretch hood packaging, collation shrink, primary packaging, and greenhouse applications that previously were not possible.

Researched and trialled It says that research and tests indicate that Exceed XP 7021 and Exceed XP 7052 also offer a combination of fractional MI and low density (0.911- 0.912 g/cm3) that is not available in the market today.This makes films with enhanced bubble stability and creates opportunities to increase output for converters.

Producers of stretch hood packaging films can now benefit from both high elastic recovery and high holding force.Thanks to the performance of Exceed XP 7021 and Exceed XP 7052 a compromise is no longer necessary, helping to enhance pallet stability for product protection and safety.The new performance PE grades also offer high puncture and dart impact resistance for less breakage, while delivering low haze which improves barcode and QR code reading. Ease of processing leads to excellent gauge control and the high elasticity provides forgiveness for less than perfect gauge profile.

Michael Vinck, Global Polyethylene New Products Marketing Manager, ExxonMobil said, “Tests undertaken in collaboration with Signode, an industry- leading OEM and manufacturer of Lachenmeier stretch hood equipment, resulted in a single resin Exceed XP 7-based solution. Although the film was co-extruded, it is a mono- material PE film contributing to its recyclability.”

Meanwhile, manufacturers of collation shrink films can offer their customers energy savings opportunities with the

new grades, which enable high shrink speeds at temperatures as low as 120°C. Films can protect sensitive products from excessive heat. The removal of cardboard trays is possible in many applications. “Films which exhibit MD and TD shrinkage at low temperatures, and can be processed on traditional blown film lines, are a rarity in the market,” said Vinck.

Primary packaging films made with Exceed XP 7021 and Exceed XP 7052 can help seal packages at low temperatures without blocking issues. Customers can reduce anti-block levels to improve coefficient of friction (COF) control and optical properties for better brand promotion. Designed for low seal initiation temperature (SIT) packaging applications, these PE polymers also enhance packaging toughness with flex crack, extreme dart and puncture, while offering good optical properties.

“Flex-crack resistance is so high, tests undertaken by ExxonMobil resulted in an average of 1 hole per ten thousand cycles,” said Vinck. “The combination of fractional MI and a 0.912 g/cm3 density helps prevent seal thinning without the addition of LDPE when compared to conventional sealing resins.”

Greenhouse films that are tough, clear, and soft can now be fabricated by converters due to the extreme dart and puncture resistance offered by the Exceed grades. As a result, the greenhouse films have better integrity, reducing the risk of failure and premature breakage during installation and in-service. “Films made with these new grades offer farmers the opportunity to enjoy longer and better growing conditions for potentially higher crop yields, helping to meet the growing population’s need for food,” said Vinck.

Greenhouse films feature remarkable softness and clarity combined with dart and puncture resistance for integrity

Collation shrink films at low temperatures offer potential energy savings from lower energy use

He adds, “Extending the extreme performance of our Exceed XP portfolio to ‘never seen before’ levels, these new grades are designed to help the value chain create innovative solutions to meet specific applications needs.”

“We are currently working closely with our value chain partners to develop film formulation solutions that many in the industry believe would only happen in the future but which, through collaboration, we are making possible today,” Vinck concludes.

DECEMBER 2021

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Injection Moulding Asia Consumer Electronics

New innovations to level up electro-technology High-performance electro-technology solutions are on the rise, in a world where speed, efficiency, and dependability are key benchmarks. These new innovations provide manufacturers with options for meeting consumer demand while emphasising product safety and longevity of service life, adds Angelica Buan in this report.

Avient’s ECCOH LSFOH grades for industrial and telecom cables, fulfil the performance requirements of fibre optics, telecommunications infrastructure, and comply with the new IEC 60794-6 standard

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hen it comes to cutting-edge electronic gadgets with high-performing functionalities, customers are not leaving shopping carts empty. And it’s not for the reasons we may think. The days of owning gadgets as a status symbol or buying the most recent gizmo to keep up with the Joneses are long gone.

In today’s fast-paced world, consumer electronics have become indispensable to consumers everywhere. With electronic devices, we are able to communicate, interact, plan our daily lives, and get our fix of entertainment.

Nonetheless, today’s consumers also expect a more robust user experience.

Thus, market players are investing in R&D to introduce new advanced engineering materials and specialised grade compounds with properties that meet the performance, functionality, safety, and long service life requirements of consumers.

Withstanding up to 20,000 flex fatigue cycles, ECCOH 5565 has flexibility and environmental stress cracking resistance (ESCR), making it ideal for power and control cables in industrial machinery, heating and air-conditioning systems, and plant engineering systems, where flex resistance is required during installation or use.

It also has good temperature resistance, operating over a wide temperature range of minus 40-80°C, as well as water absorption resistance. This makes it suitable for use in dry optical fibre cable applications or where additional cold resistance is required, such as indoor and outdoor duct cable applications, powerto-the-antennas, or 5G hybrid cables.

High flame retardancy and good char forming properties are combined with a high ESCR in ECCOH 5978 UV formulations. This makes them more effective in aerial drop cables, which are frequently subjected to constant stress from the clamps that keep them in place. This formulation can be used on direct buried cables and other duct or indoor applications that require extra flame and low dripping performance, as well as where cable fixations and movements put extra stress on the cable jacket.

Low smoke solution for fibre optics application Cables and wires, which are the vital arteries of electronic devices and electrical conduits, are prone to fire hazards.

Used for cable jacketing in the wire and cable industry, low smoke-free halogen materials are thermoplastic or thermoset compounds that emit limited smoke and no halogen when subjected to heat or exposed to fire.

These flame retardant (FR) compounds address consumer concerns about fire safety and toxicity, as well as the growing demand for FR plastics in the construction, electrical and electronics, and transportation sectors, and government fire safety regulations.

Traditional materials like polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and fluorinated ethylene propylene emit less dense smoke and hardly any highly toxic gases called halogens. Thus, halogen-free, low-smoke cable cables are used in a variety of applications, including poorly ventilated areas and other potentially dangerous environments.

US manufacturer of specialised polymer materials Avient, formerly known as Polyone, has launched its new ECCOH LSFOH (low smoke and fume, zero halogen) grades for industrial and telecom cables, which fulfil the performance requirements of fibre optics, telecommunications infrastructure, and the new IEC 60794-6 standard.

Its latest offering, ECCOH 5565 and ECCOH 5978 UV, two new cable jacketing formulations, help extend the life of cables, it said.

Safety standards compliance with FR resins With the implementation of safety standards, substandard electronic products are being pushed out of the market. This is beneficial to consumers. As well, with the implementation of the International Electrotechnical Commission’s new IEC 62368-1 consumer electronics safety standard, many manufacturers are looking for higher- performing FR materials.

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Injection Moulding Asia Consumer Electronics Realme created an ultra-thin-wall battery cover to reduce product weight and maximise space for internal components while still adhering to the IEC standard.

It was the first consumer electronics company to use Sabic’s FR resin, a PC-based copolymer material that replaces standard PC while providing improved FR capability defined as UL 94 V0 at 0.6mm. LNP Elcres EXL7414 resin uses a non-chlorinated, nonbrominated FR formulation as part of its safety value.

Sabic has also introduced LNP Stat-Kon and LNP Stat-Loy compounds, with enhanced anti-static performance for applications regulated under the EU’s increasingly stringent ATEX directive governing equipment used in explosive atmospheres. The new technologies can potentially replace less-effective metals and coated or filled polymers in electronics enclosures, automation equipment, equipment housings, lighting fixtures, safety gear and hand-held devices such as flashlights.

The two new products are based on Sabic’s LNP copolymers technology. Stat-Kon compound is said to be an advanced material that provides exceptional electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection while retaining impact resistance to safeguard sensitive electronics and offers processing ease.

Meanwhile, Stat-Loy D3000IEU6 compound is a colourable product that offers opportunities to reduce costly secondary painting operations and also adding aesthetics as previously ATEX applications were mainly in black.

Realme uses chemical company Sabic’s new LNP Elcres EXL7414 copolymer resin for the battery enclosure of its C25 phone to achieve UL 94 V0 FR compliance at 0.6 mm

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Realme has chosen chemical company Sabic’s new LNP Elcres EXL7414 copolymer resin for the battery enclosure of its C25 phone to achieve UL 94 V0 FR compliance at 0.6 mm, as required by the new IEC standard. The C25 phone was designed to be thin (9.6 mm) and light (209 g).

TPU for high-strength, flexible applications When compared to other types of polymeric films, thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) films have a higher elongation and characteristics like high strength, flexibility, toughness, and ease of application, making it a better choice for demanding film applications.

Elastollan TPU from Germany-based chemical firm BASF is more than that. The company has launched a new Consumer Electronics toolkit that includes a collection of Elastollan TPU wearables and mobile phone protective cases.

Six classic Elastollan designs are featured in the collection, featuring scratch, UV, and discolouration resistance, as well as good transparency and ease of colouring. The protective cases can also be made with biocontent, thereby meeting the sustainability goals of consumer electronics brands.

The watch strap collection combines style with everyday wear and tear resistance, BASF said. The collection of textured straps made with Elastollan, developed with Singapore-headquartered Meiban’s laser texturing Innovation Meiban Skin (IMS) technology, has a soft touch feel and abrasion/UV resistance.

Sabic’s new LNP compounds offer enhanced anti-static performance for applications regulated under the EU’s increasingly stringent ATEX directive governing equipment used in explosive atmospheres

Furthermore, the new LNP copolymer resin’s flame retardance supports its potential use in ultra-thin-wall components, which could help save device weight and space in ever- thinner designs. The LNP copolymer resin also has good flow for thin-wall moulding, ductility to resist drop damage, and chemical resistance to withstand UV-cured painting.

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Injection Moulding Asia Consumer Electronics antireflective coating materials (BARCs), advanced overcoats and ancillaries.

Meanwhile, at the back of an increased demand for printed circuit boards (PCBs) and advancements in connectivity and automotive electronics, DuPont debuted Circuit Materials Innovations at a China-held show earlier this year to keep up with emerging trends like PCB miniaturisation and a growing demand for highspeed data and signal transmission. Flexible PCBs and low-loss materials will continue to gain popularity as consumer electronics become smaller, thinner, and more multifunctional The High-Density Interconnect (HDI), Substratelike PCB (SLP), and IC Substrate segments of DuPont Interconnect Solutions’ broad product portfolio are designed for fine- line applications. The Riston DI95 Dry Film, a multi-wavelength DI dry film photoresist developed for pitch 70m HDI tent/etch process, is one of the new products. It allows for fine patterning with high yields.

Pyralux GFL Sheet Adhesive is a proprietary B-staged modified polymer adhesive with low-loss properties for high-performance applications and excellent mechanical resilience for high-yield circuit fabrication.

Pyralux GFL is primarily utilised to bond flexible inner layers or rigid cap layers in flexible and rigid-flex constructions; and the Interra HK 04J, a thin laminate with a polyimide dielectric, is designed to function as a power and ground plane in printed wiring boards (PWBs). It is ideal for applications such as embedded capacitance technology for PWB or semiconductor packaging, and high-speed digital applications for reduced impedance.

DuPont said that these technologies enable miniaturised devices and improve the functionality of electronic components while enhancing high reliability and productivity.

BASF’s Elastollan soft touch feel TPU series is made possible with Meiban’s Innovative Meiban Skin IMS technology

The innovation serves a much greater purpose for users as they can quickly visualise interactive 3D constructs for a richer and more immersive experience, according to BASF, through using mixed reality devices. Remote collaboration and streamlined creative workflows of ideas and concepts also largely owe to advanced technology.

Advancement in microelectronics Global semiconductor equipment investments for front end fabrications are expected to reach nearly US$100 billion in 2022, driven by digital transformation and other secular technology trends. This is in line with meeting surging demand for electronics, according to the World Fab Forecast report released by SEMI, an industry association made up of companies involved in the electronics design and manufacturing supply chain.

In terms of regional fabrication equipment spending in 2022, South Korea will lead with US$30 billion, followed by Taiwan with US$26 billion, and China with nearly US$17 billion. With roughly US$9 billion in fabrication equipment spending, Japan will take fourth spot, while spending in the Americas and Southeast Asia is expected to exceed US$6 billion and US$2 billion, respectively.

This development underpins a collaboration between DuPont Electronics & Industrial and Kempur Microelectronics to supply microlithography materials in China to meet the country’s demand for advanced photoresists and other lithographic materials.

The collaboration will enable Kempur to quickly supply a wide range of lithographic materials to support customer growth.

Kempur, which was founded in 2004, is one of China’s largest photoresist manufacturers, with a portfolio that includes photoresists and other supporting materials for integrated circuit fabrication, as well as resists for lightemitting diodes (LED) fabrication and other applications.

DuPont is a global supplier in materials for semiconductor fabrication, with a diverse array of established products for lithography at multiple wavelengths, including 193nm (ArF), 248nm (KrF) and i/g-line photoresists, as well as spin-on carbon (SOC),

DuPont Electronics & Industrial and Kempur partnered up to supply microlithography materials in China to meet the country’s demand for advanced photoresists and other lithographic materials

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Injection Moulding Asia Advertorial

Plastics industry’s efforts to comply with China’s “Dual Carbon” targets

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hina has embarked on a road towards a “dual carbon” target where it commits to reach its carbon peak by 2030 and move forward to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. As the world raised concerns over climate change, countries are exerting efforts and directing resources to curb carbon and greenhouse gas emissions. Having the world’s biggest industrial production, China’s role in meeting its “dual carbon” goal is crucial and its commitment has been well received around the world.

To reach its “dual carbon” goal, China has introduced policies encouraging technological innovations that are aimed at encouraging smart production, utilising renewable energy, increasing recycling and usage of biobased and recycled materials. More investments have also been directed towards “green manufacturing” projects as green manufacturing is one of the strategic objectives under the ‘Made in China 2025’ plan. The government has also been supporting some industries that have shifted to products that contribute to reduction in carbon emission, such as the production of new energy vehicles (NEV) like electric vehicles.

Sabic has announced the successful implementation of another project under its TRUCIRCLE program to speed up its move towards a circular plastic economy. Allied Bakeries, a UK-based supplier of bakery products, has introduced bread bags made

by St. Johns Packaging using Sabic’s certified circular polyethylene (PE) in the packaging of their Kingsmill No Crusts 50/50.

A collaboration between Ineos Styrolution and travel luggage maker TUPLUS enabled the latter to utilise Ineos’s Terluran ECO GP-22 MR50, a fully recyclable ABS grade containing 50% of recycled post-consumer waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), to produce its travel luggage.

The contribution of Clariant to China’s carbon neutrality goal is through its MegaMax catalyst series for CO2-based methanol production which aims to help China reach its carbon neutrality target. Capturing and converting CO2 emissions is a cornerstone of the technology roadmap for addressing climate change. Synthesising methanol from CO2 is a particularly valuable approach because methanol forms a building block for thousands of chemical products such as plastics, paints, cosmetics, and fuels — including providing an energy storage carrier for hydrogen.

At CHINAPLAS 2022, the highly efficient machines, recycling technologies and other production techniques that will help plastics manufacturers achieve their goals of reducing their carbon emissions are among the highlights. On-floor demonstrations of well-known Chinese and overseas exhibitors, and consultations with technical experts will further help visitors as they explore viable options.

For more information, visit: www.chinaplasonline.com.

Plastics manufacturing at a turning point China’s plastics manufacturing operations are largely dependent on fossil fuels, hence carbon emissions from these plants remain high. A report from the WWF Global states that in 2021, researchers estimate that the production and incineration of plastics will amount to over 850 million tonnes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

As plastics factories resume their production following the pandemic, emissions from these factories have surged.

But the commitment of the plastics industry has not waned and will continue to inspire innovations. Given that each stage of plastics production produces greenhouse gas emissions that affects the environment, a growing number of companies in the plastics industry are taking urgent steps to reduce their carbon footprint, either through the use of more efficient and smarter production process, shift towards renewable energy such as solar energy to power their plants, plastics recycling and re-use of recycled materials as inputs.

Leading global companies are supporting China’s goal to reduce carbon emissions. DSM announced that it is accelerating its efforts to reduce its total greenhouse gas emissions (including Scope 1, 2, 3 upstream) and the carbon footprint of its products by 50% by 2030, from a 2016 baseline. In its drive towards 100% renewable electricity, DSM Engineering Materials plants in Europe and China are already fully powered by renewable electricity. In addition, it has committed to developing and rolling out bio- and/or recycled-based alternatives for its entire portfolio by 2030; specific grades are already available for all major product lines.

4 DECEMBER 2021

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Injection Moulding Asia Automotive

EVs on growth trajectory path; Asia jumps on bandwagon, too Electric vehicle (EV) growth has jumped by an astronomical 140% in 2021 as automotive makers target 40 million units/year by 2030, with 32% of the global market now covered by commitments to end sales of fossil fuel-powered vehicles, and 20% covered by national policies. Meanwhile, Thailand and Indonesia are poised to be EV hubs in Asia.

latter figure is up from just 4.6 million at the time of COP25.

At the same time, by 1H 2021, the global fleet of zeroemission buses has increased by 22% since 2019, and it is expected that 18% of all municipal buses on the road to be zero-emission at the end of 2021.

What is more, the future looks brighter than ever. A review of industry outlooks shows that zero-emission vehicle forecasts have been raised across the board.

BNEF says its own forecast for the global ZEV fleet in 2040 has been raised from 495 million vehicles in its 2019 forecast, to 677 million in its 2021 Electric Vehicle Outlook.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has raised its 2030 battery EV fleet forecast by 7% since 2019, while the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has raised its 2040 estimate for the global electric and fuel cell vehicle fleet by 11%.

Growth spurt based on commitments Passenger electric vehicle (EV) sales are set to jump over 80% in 2021, to 5.6 million units, against the back of unprecedented industry and government commitments around the world over the last two years, according to the Zero-Emission Vehicles Factbook, a report published

by BloombergNEF (BNEF), at the request of the UK COP26 Presidency and in partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies.

The Factbook documents the progress that has been made towards global net-zero emissions in the road transport sector, and shows that the future is brighter than ever for zero-emission vehicles.

In the first half of 2021, sales of passenger EVs (including battery electric, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell vehicles) were 140% higher than the same period in 2019, reaching 7% of global passenger vehicle sales. This compares with just 2.6% in 2019, the year of the last UN Climate Change Conference.

Factors pushing growth Underpinning these stronger forecasts are a range of factors, including improving battery technology and costs, faster roll-outs of charging infrastructure, a wider range of vehicle models on offer to customers, and longer range and faster charging speeds available on the newest vehicles. Each of these factors is discussed in detail in the report.

The report was launched in time for Transport Day of COP26, where a coalition of government and global car industry leaders working towards 100% zero-emission new car, van and HGV sales by 2040, will come together, helping Fleet growth of vehicles to keep 1.5 degrees within reach.

The total global fleet of passenger electric and fuel cell vehicles In an Annex to the report, BNEF finds that automotive now totals nearly 13 million, of which 8.5 million are true zeromakers committed to reaching 100% zero-emission vehicle emission vehicles (ZEVs), either battery electric or fuel cell sales by 2035 and now account for 32% of the global market. (still, fuel cell vehicles account for a fraction of that total). The The Annex finds that similar national targets account for 20% of passenger vehicle sales.

US state-level targets to phase out sales of internal combustion engines now cover a quarter of automotive sales in the country (which currently does not have a national phase-out target). Additionally, the combined national targets, ICE phase-out targets and interim ZEV sales targets of China, India, and the US, reach nearly 41% of the global passenger vehicle market.

This is up from just 8% in 2019.

Ambitious targets are increasingly being matched by policies and regulations stimulating market growth for zero-emission vehicles. The European Union’s proposed CO2 emissions standards imply that EVs should account for 25%-32% of sales in the bloc by 2025, Source: BloombergNEF. Note:ZEVs only include battery electric vehicels (BEVs) and fuel cell and 60%-83% by 2030. vehicels (FCVs) 5 DECEMBER 2021

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Injection Moulding Asia Automotive

Source: BloombergNEF. Proposed fuel economy rules in the US imply a 24% market share for EVs by 2026, on the way to a 50% share by 2030 under US President Biden’s executive order.

Elsewhere, China is targeting 20% new energy vehicles by 2025, increasing to 40% by 2030.

in the first half of 2024 and aims to leverage Indonesia’s significant raw material resources, especially nickel.

In the electric two-wheeler segment, Gojek and Gogoro in cooperation with state-owned oil/gas firm Pertamina will conduct a pilot of four battery swapping and 250 electric scooters in Jakarta, with an eventual scale of up to 5,000 units.

“Keen industry interest and activities are a clear signal that Thailand and Indonesia would be very interesting to watch in their journey towards automotive and transportation electrification and transformation,” said Roland Berger Southeast Asia Partner, Udomkiat Bunworasate.

Thailand/Indonesia to be EV hubs in Asia It is not just in China that the momentum is rising. In Southeast Asia, Thailand and Indonesia are positioned to become EV ecosystem hubs, according to Roland Berger’s 10th edition Automotive Disruption Radar (ADR).

The Thai government’s National Electric Vehicle Policy Committee had set the new EV policy in March 2021, which provides clear emphasis on zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs).

This announcement is designed to enable 50% of vehicles produced in Thailand to be ZEVs by the end of this decade and 100% by 2035.

Recently, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had reiterated this ambitious goal at the 2021 COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland.

The Thai government’s commitment to promoting ZEVs has sparked interest among industry players, with talk on potential investment on EV-related joint-ventures and plant investments.

Most recently, Taiwanese electronics firm Foxconn announced plans to produce up to 200,000 EVs/year in Thailand, in a joint venture with Thai-based gas and petroleum business company PTT Public Company Limited, to start in 2023/4.

Sales demand-driven not based on environmental concerns On the demand side, customers are showing strong interest to purchase EVs. In general, short-distance car trips are the main reason for wanting to buy an EV, and action for the environment comes second. Interestingly, the environment was not a key concern based on the ADR survey results in 2020.

Based on the latest ADR survey, 80% of Thai respondents and 75% of Indonesian respondents indicated interest to purchase a battery electric vehicle as their next car. Thai and Indonesian consumers also scored higher than the global average in listing short-distance car trips and action for the environment as the two top reasons for wanting to buy an EV. Key concerns in both countries were also in line with global respondents, who were mainly deterred from purchasing an EV due to the higher price tag compared to internal combustion engine (ICE) cars and limited availability of charging facilities.

Roland Berger says its ADR is the only established tool in the market measuring the change in the automotive industry. The platform ranks countries based on 26 indicators to measure the level of innovation, progressive digitalisation, and electrification in the automotive industry.

Indonesian EV regulations attract industry players The Indonesian government has announced a national strategy with targets to achieve 2.2 million EVs and 13 million electric bikes on the road by 2030.

The country is slated to benefit from US$1 billion worth of investment following plans by Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solutions to build a battery cell manufacturing site with 10 GWh capacity in Karawang. The plant is due to open 6 DECEMBER 2021

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Injection Moulding Asia Machinery News

New machinery adds to personal touch Arburg displays variety of machinery and technology Arburg had the largest trade fair stand and many new products on display, combining major topics of the future – digitalisation as well as sustainability and resource conservation in 2021 – with its declared aim of increasing customers’ production efficiency.

As is well known, the “arburgGREENworld” programme brings together all aspects of resource conservation and the circular economy. At its stand, Arburg used several applications to demonstrate how resources can be conserved and materials recycled.

Examples included the processing of transparent biobased P 12, a bio-plastic consisting of 39% renewable raw materials based on castor oil. This material was used to create the well-known Uvex sunglasses on a turnkey system based on an Allrounder 520 A.

In an industry that thrives on personalised (rather than online) meetings, machinery makers at the recent Fakuma show, held in Friedrichshafen, Germany, were finally able to meet customers and partners face-to-face, after the past two years of no shows, and launch new machines, too.

Positive vibes from exhibitors With exhibitions having been cancelled or postponed as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, companies breathed a sigh relief at the recent Fakuma show.

Christoph Schumacher, Director of Marketing at injection moulding machine maker Arburg, said, “Our expectations were more than met: the quality of the trade visitors and their interest in our exhibits and innovations was very high. Many decision-makers came to our stand to discuss specific projects.”

The new Allrounder More multi-component machine made its world debut at the show

Post consumer recyclate (PCR) was used on an Allrounder 1300 T rotary table machine at the stand of Arburg’s partner, Lauffer.

In the case of recyclates, the sharply fluctuating quality of the material places high demands on injection moulding machines and injection moulding processes. To address this, Arburg has put together a new “recyclate package”, which premiered at Fakuma. The package includes various control functions and special plasticising features to enable recyclates to be processed reliably. The recyclate package is available for all Allrounders and can also be retrofitted to older models.

Just how sustainability and digitalisation interact was demonstrated by the “CurveCode” and “HolyGrail” marking technologies as innovative solutions for separating plastics by type and returning them to the materials cycle.

Arburg’s new Allrounder More machine series also made its first debut at an exhibition. The series covers the two sizes 1600 and 2000 and caters to multi- component

Arburg displayed a cross-section of its diverse range of products and services at Fakuma

Meanwhile, compatriot company, Austrian machine maker Engel, also said Fakuma 2021 was a great success. Christoph Steger, CSO of the Engel Group, said, “The automotive industry has come back with a bang, and the investment backlog has cleared. Even if the Corona pandemic is still preventing some travel, Engel’s stand was well attended.“ He also said visitors came not only from the automotive industry, but also the medical technologies, packaging and technical moulding sectors.

Peter Kochs, Director Sales & Business Development, Europe, of Ferromatik Milacron, said, “Our team met in person with a significant number of injection moulding prospects as well as existing customers from Europe and abroad.“ 7 DECEMBER 2021

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Injection Moulding Asia Machinery News The Austrian firm presented a closed process chain for PP involving the production of mono-material food packaging using IML thin-wall technology and the production of protective covers from label offcuts.

At the same time, thee-speed 420 machine celebrated its world premiere. “Hybrid and all-electric injection moulding machines are seeing deployment in an increasing number of applications,” says Steger.

Demanding precision applications gave insights into the performance of the various hybrid and all-electric machine series.

In this regard, two machine exhibits that Engel presented on site in Friedrichshafen was the production of pipette tips on an all-electric e-mac and the manufacture of microcomponents from LSR on an all-electric and tiebar- less e-motion TL.

Lukas Pawelczyk (right), Department Manager Sales Freeformer at Arburg, explains the freeformer’s potential to visitors

Moulders get first look at Milacron’s new eQ all-electric Germany’s Ferromatik Milacron announced a new addition to parent copany Milacron’s all-electric eQ -Series CE, now available to injection moulders across Europe at Fakuma.

The new Milacron 150-tonne eQ-series injection moulding machine was displayed with a 24-cavity HDPE moulded cap application with a 2.7 cycle time The eQ series is a high-precision electric machine, which is said to combine accuracy and reliability across all processes. Optimised energy consumption through regenerative power recovery system stores energy during motor braking and allows up to 70% reduced melt stress.

The machinery supports additional specialised processes like thin wall moulding and multi-component moulding.

This machinery line can be requested by moulders across Europe and Asia, said Milacron.

Some highlights of the machine are: screw diameter of 18-90 mm; maximum energy efficiency thanks to regenerative servo drive technology; low maintenance costs; series-standard overvoltage protection device; latest servo drive technology for increased efficiency throughout the entire injection process; improved kinematics of the toggle joint combined with steering of the closing force into the tool centre and latest Milacron control generation Mosaic G3.

injection moulding, with a flexible design to offer more space for larger moulds and ejectors, more modularity in its assembly, and ease of use via the Gestica control system. An Allrounder More 1600 produced a complex lab-on-a-chip for medical technology at the trade fair.

Other focal points were the Gestica control system and the planetary roller screw drive – both “made

by Arburg” and benchmarks in the plastics industry.

Arburg also highlighted its drive element, the planetary roller screw drive as an important part of the drive train, which is a central feature for the performance and durability of an injection moulding machine and accordingly a “seal of quality”.

Additive manufacturing also played an important role at Fakuma. A live presentation was given of the processing of high-temperature material Ultem on a freeformer 300-3X. In addition, a large number of components demonstrated the potential offered by Arburg Plastic Freeforming for the medical technology and automotive sectors, where Arburg is working on exciting projects together with partners and customers.

Also prominently represented on Arburg’s stand was sister company innovatiQ and its LiQ 320 printing system, which processes liquid silicone (LSR) using the LAM (liquid additive manufacturing) process.

Engel leveraging the full potential of its machines At Engel’s stand, solutions for more sustainability in injection moulding and further digitalisation of production processes met with great interest, since “the two topics are closely linked”.

“Digitalisation is an important precursor to the circular economy,” said Steger. “Smart assistance systems and interconnected systems help us to leverage the full potential of injection moulding machines, for more efficient production while reducing the CO2 footprint.”

Compared to the last Fakuma, Engel’s stand was larger with additional space used to present digital products and solutions.

Ferromatik Milacron has a new addition to Milacron’s all-electric eQ -Series CE available to injection moulders across Europe

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Rubber Journal Asia Industry News • Japanese tyre maker Bridgestone Corporation has withdrawn from the conveyor belt business. It said that it plans to reduce its production and sales volume gradually to minimise the impact to the operations of its customers and suppliers, and will withdraw from the business completely by the end of 2024.

• US-based specialty chemicals firm Eastman Chemical Company’s tyre additives business has been acquired by an affiliate of private equity firm One Rock Capital Partners. The acquired company will operate under the name Flexsys.

• Munich-based chemical company Wacker Chemical has acquired a 60% stake in Chinese manufacturer of organofunctional silanes Sico Performance Material ffor EUR120 million.

• Swiss elastomers firm Datwyler has sold its German subsidiary, an online distributor, Reichelt to German private equity firm Invision. Reichelt made CHF188.8 million in 2020 in online distribution of electronic components.

• US-based industrial technology company EnPro Industries has sold its polymer components business to private equity firm Edgewater Capital Partners.

The polymer components business is headquartered in Texas, with two production facilities in Texas and a smaller site in Pennsylvania, and is part of Enpro’s sealing technologies segment. The organisation will be renamed Altamira Material Solutions.

• UK’s Fenner Precision Polymers, a Michelin Group Company and supplier of

reinforced polymer technology, has acquired Lumsden Corporation, a manufacturer of industrial conveyor belting and wire cloth for the quarry and mining industry, as well as related solutions for a wide variety of applications including food processing, heat treating, mining, glass treating, printing and canning.

• US carbon black supplier Cabot Corporation is to acquire Tokai Carbon (Tianjin) from Tokai Carbon Group for US$9 million. The carbon black manufacturing facility was commissioned in 2006 and is located in close proximity to Cabot’s current carbon black and specialty compounds facility in Tianjin, China. The acquisition is expected to support the growth of Cabot’s battery materials product line.

• German technology firm Continental is to acquire Swedish polymers firm Trelleborg’s printing solutions business, headquartered in Lodi Vecchio, Italy, to complement its surface solutions and printing technology portfolio.

• Swedish industrial group Indutrade is to acquire all of the shares in Czech silicone moulder Silroc CZ, which has annual sales of approximately CZK85 million.

• Polytek Development Corp. a US manufacturer of specialty polymers for coating, mould making, and casting applications and portfolio company of Arsenal Capital Partners, has acquired Specialty Resin & Chemical, a supplier of mould making, casting, coating products, epoxy and PU resin, rubber, silicone, and related accessories.

• Malaysia-listed agrochemical firm Hextar Global Bhd has executed

a RM50 million financing facility from HSBC Amanah Malaysia Bhd to finance its purchase of Nobel Synthetic Polymer Sdn Bhd and Nobel Scientific Sdn Bhd, collectively known as the Nobel Group, which manufacture chemical derivatives for the rubber sector, coatings, and related products. The agrochemical company said the facility is expected to increase its consolidated gearing from 0.52 times to 1.21 times.

• India’s Apollo Tyres is now manufacturing its Vredestein brand of tyres in India for the superbike and premium and luxury passenger car segments.

The tyre manufacturer had acquired the European brand in 2009 and launched it in India with a range of imported tyres. Apollo had previously said that it planned to locally manufacture tyres from the premium brand in India.

• Norway-based silicon-based materials supplier Elkem is investing EUR36 million in new specialty silicones supply for customers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and the Americas.

The company will upgrade and debottleneck its silicone upstream plant in Roussillon, France, by a 20,000-tonne capacity expansion, bringing the effective silicone intermediates capacity from Elkem’s upstream plant in Roussillon, France to 100,000 tonnes/year.

• Zhongce Rubber Group (ZC Rubber), a Chinese tyre manufacturer, plans to leverage 5G technology to improve data network platform innovation and data-driven manufacturing process reengineering. Through network collaboration, flexible production, and service expansion, it said that it will improve core competitiveness

1 DECEMBER 2021

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Rubber Journal Asia Industry News and company value, as well as develop a replicable 5G Smart Factory platform for the tyre industry.

• End-of-life tyre (ELT) recycler Pyrum Innovations has started the expansion of the production capacity of its pyrolysis plant at its headquarters in Dillingen, Germany. To date, the plant consists of one production line, which has been operating on an industrial scale since May 2020, producing pyrolysis oil, recovered carbon black and pyrolysis gas from more than 7,000 tonnes of ELTs during this period. The addition of two more production lines will triple processing capacity to approximately 20,000 tonnes/year of ELTs. • The joint venture between German chemicals firm Evonik and Chinese company Wynca, Evonik Wynca (Zhenjiang) Silicon Material, is startingup its new fumed silica plant.

Located in the Zhenjiang New Material Industry Park in Jiangsu province, the plant is Evonik’s first fumed silica production site in China.

• Polish chemical firm Synthos is constructing a new 120 kilotonnes/ year butadiene extraction unit with associated logistic infrastructure in Plock, Poland. The commissioning of the butadiene extraction unit and first production are scheduled for 2024. Air Liquide Engineering and Construction is licensing the BASF NMP Butadiene Extraction technology and has been awarded with the overall engineering, procurement and construction services and supplies for the project.

• Italian bicycle tyre maker Vittoria Group is constructing a new factory in Thailand.

The US$20 million investment will see its local subsidiary Lion Tyres Thailand (LTT)’s factory premises grow from 36,00052,000 sq m in the Bangpoo industrial district, near the current LTT headquarters.

Operations will start at end of 2022 and allow Vittoria to double the total output capacity of tyres over the coming years.

Trelleborg Sealing Solutions will begin manufacturing sealing solutions for the large domestic Russian market in the third quarter of 2022. The production site, located in Yesipovo near Moscow, will manufacture high-performance seals for the transportation equipment and aerospace market segments, among others.

• In line with its restructuring plan, Bridgestone Corporation is consolidating its plants for automotive seat pads in Japan, which are now manufactured in four plants owned by its group companies, out of which three plants are owned by Bridgestone Chemitech Co (BSCT), and one plant owned

by Bridgestone Diversified Chemical Products (BDCP).

It will close the BSCT plant in Ageo, Saitama Prefecture, in the fourth quarter of 2023 and consolidate operations within the three remaining facilities for automotive seat pad production – BSCT’s Nabari and Hofu sites as well as BDCP’s Tosu plant.

• Italian tyre maker Pirelli is investing US$36 million in its Silao, Mexico, manufacturing site to raise production capacity from 6.6-7.2 million tyres/year.

The facility employs over 2,700 people and services the local and greater North American markets.

• Indian tyre maker BKT has started trial production at a new facility in Waluj, Maharashtra, following an investment of US$65 million. Spanning an area of 22 acres, BKT’s latest plant is situated 5 km from an existing BKT plant, also in Waluj.

Around 500 employees will work at the facility where small and medium diameter tyres will be manufactured for machinery working in the agricultural and industrial sectors. It will have an estimated production capacity of 30,000 tonnes/year of off-highway tyres (OTRs).

• Trelleborg Group is expanding geographically by establishing manufacturing operations in Russia, Vietnam, Japan and Morocco, with an investment of SEK300 million over five years.

• US firm Lion Elastomers will be expanding the emulsionbased facility in Texas, US, to manufacture NBR (nitrile butadiene rubber), to support the domestic demand. Major markets include general mechanical goods, automotive parts, oil and gas field supplies, medical devices, and personal protective equipment.

• Carbon black supplier Orion Engineered Carbons will convert a reactor line at its plant in Louisiana, US, from manufacturing soft carbon black to producing hard carbon black, commonly used in tyre treads. It will increase supply by 30,000 tonnes/year by mid-2022.

• Russia’s PJSC Tatneft has signed a license and engineering agreement with Italian chemical firm Versalis relating to technologies for the production of NBR and carboxylate styrene butadiene rubber latexes (XSBR). The plants to be built at the Togliatti industrial site will produce 70,000 tonnes/year of NBR and 30,000 tonnes/year of XSBR.

2 DECEMBER 2021

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Rubber Journal Asia Glove Sector

Glove sector gains an upper hand in PPE market Consumption for rubber gloves has gone up amid workplace safety concerns and

the management of emerging infectious

diseases like the recent Covid-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the nitrile butadiene rubber market has responded positively with improved supply.

Growing reliance on PPE, a gain for the NBR latex Industrialisation is gradually spreading across the globe, leading to the emergence of industry-focused economies all over the world. As a result of this expansion, there has been an increase in workrelated risks, prompting various authorities such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to mandate the provision of efficient safety equipment to workers, particularly in high-risk industries such as healthcare and chemical.

Notably, during the Covid-19 pandemic, the importance of having dependable and high- quality PPE (personal protective equipment), particularly gloves, was emphasised. Gloves are an important component of the coronavirus defense protocol because they protect health workers from disease transmission while they are treating patients.

This trend is poised to boost the nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) latex industry, which is expected to exceed US$4 billion by 2027, according to Global Market Insights (GMI) estimates.

NBR latex is known for its multiple advantages, such as high performance in extreme temperatures, oil resistance, and personal protection, making it suitable for use in a wide variety of industrial applications.

Demand for medical gloves accelerates NBR output Gloves are inevitable medical devices, shared Toms Joseph, former Joint Director (Economics) at Rubber Board, Kottayam, Kerala, India, and Economist at the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC). Throughout those periods of rising and falling rubber glove shares, and until the NBR glove technology was developed and patented in 1990 by Neil Tillotson and Luc DeBecker, natural rubber (NR), nitrile, and vinyl gloves remained the most common types used in the medical sector, Joseph said in an article.

The development of blood and body fluid safeguards to all patients bolstered demand for medical rubber gloves

Rubber product factories began producing rubber gloves on request from hospitals and other healthcare facilities. Medical gloves eventually became required PPE for healthcare providers, patients, and others to ensure barrier protection by reducing the risk of pathogen exposure. Gloves are also worn by employees in spas, salons, and other places where physical contact is possible, Thomas said.

Medical rubber gloves (including surgical rubber gloves) are regulated as Class I Reserved Medical Devices in the US, and the FDA inspects them to ensure that performance criterion, such as leak resistance, tear resistance, puncture resistance as well as biocompatibility, are met.

In a similar vein, GMI stated that increased demand for raw materials, such Gloves are vital PPE in the coronavirus defense protocol because they protect health as NBR latex, has contributed to the high workers from disease transmission while they are treating patients

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Rubber Journal Asia Glove Sector demand for effective PPE gloves. When compared to its conventional counterparts, NBR latex is quickly replacing NR as the preferred alternative due to its performance efficiency and versatility. While nitrile latex gloves are widely used in both non- medical and medical applications, the NBR latex market in the medical gloves segment is growing.

NBR latex demand, which treaded around 1 million tonne/year in 2019, nearly doubled to 1.9 million tonnes in 2020 owing to increased use of protective gloves during the pandemic. As a result, major manufacturers have ramped up their production of the material globally to meet the demand for medical PPE to combat emerging virulent diseases like the Covid-19, GMI said.

capacity, and with demand expected to continue to rise rapidly, a deficit is expected in the near future.

With regards to pricing, higher demand and sporadic shortages drove up the cost of raw materials like NR and nitrile latex on the global market. Glove manufacturing costs have also risen as a result of Covid restrictions and protocols, as well as plant closures due to worker infections.

However, the rise in glove prices and resulting increase in net profit of major glove companies has multiplied. Surgical, examination, and other disposable gloves (HS 401511 and 401519) had a global export value of US$16.71 billion in 2020, up from US$8 billion in 2019, according to Thomas.

Wide scope of applications to drive NBR growth NBR latex gloves are used in a wide range of industries, including chemical, mining, automotive, and metalworking. According to GMI’s projections, the NBR latex industry in the industrial segment will grow at a CAGR of nearly 10% through 2027, owing to the product’s suitability for PPE in key industrial uses.

In the workplace, nitrile latex gloves can protect the wearer’s hands from potential hazards like liquids, abrasive materials, and cuts. They’re particularly useful in applications involving caustics, alcohol, oils, chlorinated solvents, greases, and other chemicals.

With the demand for protective gear expanding at such a breakneck pace, major players in the NBR industry are concentrating their efforts on increasing output.

For example, in September, American Nitrile, an Ohio-based company, announced the opening of a new advanced production facility in the US dedicated to the production of nitrile gloves for use in industrial, government, and healthcare applications.

Medical gloves in epidemics, pandemics Meanwhile, Thomas adds that medical gloves have been in high demand for some time, because of advances in healthcare facilities in invasive medical procedures such as surgeries; longer life expectancy, and hygiene awareness.

During outbreaks of epidemics, however, the demand for medical gloves skyrocketed. This was true of the epidemics/pandemics during the recent decades such as AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ) in 1981 onwards, SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) in 2002-2003, Bird Flu in 2003-2004, Swine Flu in 2009-2010), Ebola in 2013, and now Covid-19.

Until the early 1980s, reliable information on HIV/AIDS transmission and infection was not available. In 1983, the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued “Blood and Body Fluid Precautions,” the first time the term AIDS was used.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) launched the Global AIDS Program in February 1987, and the CDC provided the “Universal Precautions” on dealing with blood and body fluids when managing the disease in August 1987.

The development of blood and body fluid safeguards to all patients bolstered demand for medical rubber gloves, resulting in a jump in US glove imports (particularly disposable examination gloves) from 3.9 billion pieces in 1989 to 25.29 billion in 1998. Because of the rapid increase in demand for rubber gloves, several countries increased their glove production capacities.

In the case of the Covid-19 pandemic, demand for gloves was so high that it spawned a new generation of glove tycoons, as a result of a new round of massive investment. The outbreak of the pandemic increased the demand for gloves from around 350 billion to around 400 billion.

Thomas said that even with new investments and full utilisation of global capacity, only about 420 billion pieces/year are being used at full

American Nitrile is debuting its new US production facility for nitrile gloves for industrial, government, and healthcare applications

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Rubber Journal Asia Glove Sector During the same period, India-based producer performance emulsion polymers Apcotex announced a capacity expansion plan to increase nitrile latex production at its existing India- based plants by 60,000 tonnes/year. The plants, which are expected to be completed by late 2022, will be designed for maximum manufacturing flexibility for existing industrial and healthcare protective products, as well as to improve the quality and quantity for nitrile gloves in the coming years.

Malaysia’s is arguably the largest glove maker in the world and the glove industry consumed RM6.6 billion worth of NBR in 2020 and roughly 70% of it or RM4.6 billion was imported from China, South Korea, Japan, Thailand and other countries.

Thus, Malaysian companies are also stepping up in the NBR market. Petronas Chemicals Group (PetChem), a Malaysian chemical company, announced in June its collaboration with South Korea’s LG Chem to build an NBR production plant at the Pengerang Integrated Complex (PIC) in Johor, with a production capacity of 200,000 tonnes/ year upon completion. This strategic collaboration, according to PetChem, came at an ideal time, as the demand for nitrile latex gloves has been steadily increasing.

Another Malaysian player Hong Seng Consolidated Bhd (formerly known as MSCM Holdings Bhd) has also kicked off the construction of a NBR plant in the state of Kedah. It is aimed to be completed in stages over four phases with the targeted full production capacity of 960 kilotonnes/ year. The first phase of 240 kilotonnes/year is expected to commence its commercial production by the second quarter of 2024. The company says it will contribute up to 20% of the world’s total NBR supply (upon full completion of the plant) and will help Malaysia reduce its dependency on NBR imports.

NBR latex has shown its viability as a material of choice for manufacturers and distributors expanding into novel application domains over the years. Because of the material’s technical similarities to conventional natural rubber, it is undeniably positioned as a superior alternative.

Strategic alliances to address supply-demand deficits Strategic moves such as collaborations and partnerships will not only increase these companies’ visibility in the global business landscape, but will also help them meet the safety needs of industrial end-users as they evolve.

Blue Star NBR and American Glove Innovations (AGI)-Blue Star Manufacturing joint venture Blue Star-AGI, announced in October this year, is one such partnership. The companies pledged a US$714 million investment to build a production facility for NBR and nitrile gloves in Virginia. The investment was part of the companies’ effort to increase the production of exclusively “Made in America” protective nitrile gloves as well as raw materials, which are currently primarily produced in Asia.

Petronas Chemicals Group and LG Chem have tied up to build an NBR production plant in Johor

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