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News Updates June 2010
Available in three standard colours, plus additional special order colours, the Patent for nitrile gloves resolved The settlement allows Smart Glove and Henry Schein to sell gloves made with Tillotson’s patent and protects their US customers who have bought them. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Neil Tillotson and Luc DeBecker developed and patented the nitrile glove technology in 1990. The Tillotson patent covered technology related to the production of a synthetic rubber glove that relaxes after being donned and comfortably conforms to the contours of the wearer’s hand. The patent was reissued in 1997 and expired in May 2010. Malaysia to double rubber output This was said by Bernard Giluk Dompok, the Malaysian Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities, recently. Malaysia produced 846,900 tonnes of natural rubber in 2009 and expected production in 2010 to increase by 5.9% to 900,000 tonnes. To meet the production target the planned strategy is to increase productivity by 1.8 tonnes/ha/year by 2020, from the current level of about 1.4 tonnes/ha/year and also expansion of hectarage to 1.2 million ha with a tappable area of 1 million ha, from the current hectarage of 1 million ha with a tappable area of about 0.7 million ha. The plan also envisages increasing rubber replanting to 40,000 ha/year from the current 20,000 ha, expanding existing rubber plantations and opening new rubber areas, especially in the states of Sarawak and Sabah. Other plans are to convert idle lands into rubber plantations. It also include increasing and maintaining tapping to 26 days a month and raising the number of trees per ha to 550 from the current 350-400 trees per ha. The country is also aiming to improve its downstream rubber products industry since currently almost 80% of exports consist of latex dipped rubber goods.
May 2010 Lanxess pushes start button for Singapore SR plant
The 100,000 tonnes/year synthetic rubber (SR) plant was announced in 2008 and the ground breaking was to have taken place last year but was put on hold due to the global downturn. The timing now may be questioned, too, given the recent bail out of some of the European countries, but the company that is listed on the Frankfurt stock exchange is confident of the returns it expects from the largest investment in its short five-year history, given that the butyl rubber market is expected to see average growth rates of over 3% again in coming years. This is also its largest investment in Asia, a continent that it notes will be the engine of its growth and where it generates a quarter of its total sales. Asia will be the target market for the plant’s output since the company already has butyl rubber plants in Sarnia, Canada, and in Zwijndrecht, Belgium, that are currently operating at full capacity. It intends to streamline its output from these two plants to the US/European markets and the Asian plant will cater solely to the region. It is especially banking on the growth of the tyre and automotive industries in China and India. With an annual increase of over 5%, China’s tyre market is growing faster than anywhere else in the world. Only India comes close to matching China’s growth figures, but it is starting from a much lower level. Hence, Lanxess’s move to locate its butyl rubber plant in Asia is appropriate given that 75% of the plant’s output will go to the tyre market. With the gas impermeablity properties, this type of rubber creates a reliable barrier to air, other gases and liquids. Halobutyl is especially used as an inner liner for car, truck, bus and airplane tyres while regular butyl is used in inner tubes for cars, trucks and bicycles or sports balls. Special applications include protective clothing and closures for pharmaceutical bottles, with the chewing gum market making it a niche product use. The plant on Jurong Island will occupy 200,000 sq m of leased land from the JTC Corporation, an authorised agent of the Singapore Ministry for Trade and Industry. The location is in close proximity to the Shell petrochemical refinery that will supply the feedstock for the key raw material isobutene as part of a long-term agreement. This was a reason given for why Singapore’s Jurong Island was selected as the plant’s site instead of contenders Malaysia and Thailand, which also house dedicated integrated petrochemical sites in Gebeng, Kuantan, and Map Ta Phut, Rayong, respectively. The plant will also be the most modern when it is completed with 10-15% of the EUR400 million investment geared towards making it environmentally friendly, a new buzz word in the chemical industry today. And how Lanxess is going to do that is through a technical collaboration it has with Bayer Technology Services, Technical University of Dortmund, University of Bonn and technology equipment manufacturer Buss-SMS-Canzler. The three-year project, which is also being subsidised by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, will culminate in elements of the technology being developed used in the new Singapore plant, making it more energy efficient than conventional plants. While researchers at Lanxess have developed a concept for the new process based on laboratory scale testing, the next step will be to further develop the new technology as well as to establish and run trials at a mini-plant in Dormagen, which is the home to several of the company’s key SR facilities. But the new technology will not just be used in the butyl rubber plant and it will be expanded to the SR giant’s other production facilities for polybutadiene rubber or technical rubber. The new process requires less steam, thus lowering the plant's overall energy consumption, while a flue gas purification system will break down chemical compounds, lowering carbon emissions, and a wastewater treatment plant and closed circuits will result in 50% lower production of wastewater. In addition, the company will create about 200 jobs for the new facility and plans to fill the majority of positions locally. At peak construction time, around 1,500 workers will be employed at the site. Lanxess was spun off from the Bayer Group around five years ago and it is from its predecessor that it has gained the SR portfolio. The foundation for SR was laid in 1909 by chemist Fritz Hofmann with his discovery of the elastic material methyl isoprene. On 12 September of that year, the Imperial Patents Office granted Elberfelder Farbenfabriken (now the Bayer Group), Hofmann’s employer, a patent for the “process of manufacturing artificial rubber”. Zoom into the new century and Lanxess has honed its status as the second largest supplier of butyl rubber, after US competitor ExxonMobil Chemical that has a capacity of 400,000 tonnes/year from facilities around the globe, and the largest supplier of SRs with a broad range of products. Lanxess says the new butyl plant in Singapore will be the world's first since year 2000. Its commitment to the region has been further enhanced by the move of its global headquarters for butyl rubber from Switzerland to Singapore recently. The butyl rubber business unit is part of the Performance Polymers segment, which achieved total sales in 2009 of EUR2,388 million. Good results from rubber companies Cabot reported net sales of US$712 million in the second quarter of this year, compared to US$470 million in the same quarter last year. Its rubber blacks business increased by US$56 million and volumes by 28%, globally driven by improved demand in the tyre and automotive markets. Volumes in Asia Pacific and China increased by 50% over the second quarter of 2009, South America by 31%, North America by 14% and Europe, Middle East and Africa by 8%. Meanwhile, Goodyear had improved tyre unit volumes, sales and segment operating income, as well as a significantly smaller net loss in the first quarter of 2010, despite a one-time charge related to the currency devaluation in Venezuela. The US company’s sales were also positively impacted by US$224 million in favourable foreign currency translation and by US$125 million from higher sales in other tyre-related businesses, primarily third-party chemical sales in the US. The company had an operating income of US$240 million in the first quarter, compared to the operating loss of US$176 million in the year-ago quarter. Its sales in the US increased by 15% to US$1.8 billion, compared to the same period last year, attributed to a 9% increase in tyre sales and a strong price/mix performance. Original equipment unit volume increased 45%, primarily in the consumer business due to higher vehicle production. Increased Chinese tariffs raise concerns in the US The fibre, used in tyre cord, hosiery, knitted garments and other products, is imported from the US and other countries. The exporters exempted from the 96.5% tariff are Honeywell Resins and also the US branch of BASF and they will be charged 36.2% and 29.3% respectively. Tariffs on imports from Taiwan, Russia and the European Union, imposed last October, will remain unchanged from 4 to 23.9%. Positive outcome from rubber meetings The theme of the joint conference was “Development in tyre and non-tyre industry; New material and product development; Oil and feedstock scenarios; Natural rubber production and climate change and The outlook for the world rubber industry.” There were a variety of speakers from abroad and within China discussing the impact of the current economic and financial situations on the rubber industry. Meanwhile, Qin Min, Deputy Mayor of Qingdao Municipal Government, delivered the opening address adding that it was a significant boost for the city that also serves as an economic centre and port city. He also thanked various groups associated with the rubber industry. Meanwhile the 106th Group Meeting was officiated by Saint-Cyr Djikalou, Chair of the IRSG. He stressed on the need for greater co-operation between producers and consumers and expressed hope that China would soon become a member of IRSG as it is an opportune time to do so, directing his comment at Observer Governments as well. Presentations are available from the IRSG website for members. New plant for South Korea's Hankook Tyre It already has two existing plants in Jiangsu province and Zhejiang province, since 1999, one equipped with additional facilities to cope with rising demands. The biggest shareholder in the Chinese market since 2003, Hankook is planning to build the new plant in the western part of the country with a 10 million units per year capacity although other Asian destinations such as Indonesia and India will be taken into consideration as well. Going green, with more air, less emissions The association also says that this will save consumers money and also help the environment by burning less petrol and reducing emissions. “An under-inflated tyre wastes fuel, when a tyre loses air, it takes more energy to keep it rolling efficiently,” says RMA, adding that to make matters worse, under-inflated tyres will wear out faster, which means replacing tyres more often – which uses more energy and causes consumers to spend additional money. Bridgestone expands Indonesian plant As a result of this expansion project, daily production capacity is projected to increase by 3,000 units to a total of 29,400 units by the first half of 2012. The Karawang Plant began production in 1999, supplying tyres to both the domestic market and key overseas markets, including the US and Europe. The Karawang plant is already undergoing an expansion project to increase its daily production capacity by 8,400 units. That project is scheduled to be completed this year. However, with global demand expected to continue growing, Bridgestone determined that further expansion of the plant is necessary to meet market demands. High Indian rubber prices irks associations The three associations, for the past few months, have been lobbying the government to take action on the abnormal rise in natural rubber (NR) prices and to allow them duty free import of 200,000 tonnes of NR to tide over the shortage induced by short term hoarding and profiteering by the growers. But, according to ATMA, the government has not heard the pleas and is safeguarding the interests of rubber growers from Kerala. The associations say the higher prices will affect the industry, made up of mainly small to medium players who will be unable to offset this high cost of procurement by raising product prices. ATMA said in a statement, “Natural Rubber prices in the country show that while April 2009 average was Rs.95/kg, April 2010 average was Rs.160/kg, seeing a rise of 68%. While the December 2008 average was Rs.65/kg versus April 2010 average of Rs.160/kg, thereby seeing a rise of 153%. “It went on to say, “There is probably no other commodity that has witnessed such a dramatic and unchecked spiralling of prices in recent times. Nor are there any other which face the lopsided duty structures that this industry faces where there is a 20% duty on the import of NR and a 10% duty on its finished items.”
Groundbreaking is scheduled for September and production is expected to start up in the first half of 2012. The new plant will have an investment of US$50 million. The joint venture, meanwhile, will serve Chinese customers with NBR produced at Lanxess’s La Wantzenau site in France – the world’s largest NBR site – until the Nantong plant starts up. TSRC is one of the largest synthetic rubber producers in Asia, producing ESBR, BR and TPE. Its products are sold under the trade name Taipol. It has two other plants in China besides its Nantong site and also in Taiwan and Thailand. It posted sales of US$100 million in 2009. Lanxess is the world's largest synthetic rubber and NBR producer with plants in Leverkusen, Dormagen and Marl in Germany, besides France and in the US. It had sales of EUR2.38 billion in 2009. April 2010 Glove makers rally is short lived It is also expected that the pricing power for gloves will shift from manufacturers to consumers and this would be exacerbated by additional capacity that companies are adding on in the middle of the year. Previously, the companies had peaked based on the US health bill. It was expected that with the overhaul of the US health legislation, the demand for examination gloves would rise. Adventa, Kossan and Hartalega Holding were to have been the main beneficiaries of the US healthcare bill since high-grade gloves account for the bulk of their products targeted at developed countries. Top Glove and Supermax would also have benefited as the US market accounts for 25% and 42% of their total sales respectively. Generally, Malaysian glove makers have posted higher earnings in recent years and expanded capacity as the global flu outbreak has bolstered demand. For instance, Top Glove’s second quarter profit almost doubled to US$21.2 million from a year earlier on higher sales. Healthy demand for carbon black According to the study, the capacity at the end of the three year period will total 11.6 tonnes. The vast majority of carbon black finds use as reinforcement material in vulcanised rubber goods, with over 60% concentrated in the automotive tyre market. Carbon black demand from the tyre sector is projected to increase 3.7% a year over the next three years. The non-tyre rubber carbon black market will expand 4.8% a year. Lower sales but market share increases in Asia It had worldwide sales of EUR226 million compared to EUR281 million in the previous year. The wholly owned subsidiary of the Leverkusen-based speciality chemicals group Lanxess took early steps at the beginning of 2009 to counteract the drop in sales by implementing a global package of structural improvements and measures to optimise cost and capital structures. The dramatic decline in sales in the first half of the year slowed in the second half, due in particular to the economic revival in the Asian region, where the share of global sales rose to 28%, compared to 24% in 2008. After investing EUR12 million in 2008 in the Mannheim and Qingdao, China, sites to install new, modern plants for the production of polymer-bound rubber chemicals and industrial lubricant additives, Rhein Chemie launched strategic investments in Russia in 2009. Its new facility is situated in Nizhny Novgorod. New rubber with improved properties Nordel 4785HM is a high ethylene, high molecular weight polymer designed for cost performance in elastomer parts. Dow used the distinct capabilities of the technology behind its IP hydrocarbon rubber to design the new grade with improved curing rates and green strength, while retaining fast mixing and good low temperature properties. It is designed primarily for automotive dense profiles and can also be used in hoses, building profiles, roofing and moulded parts. In all applications, filler and oil levels can be increased compared to 60-70 Mooney viscosity polymers for greater cost efficiency. Tyre and automotive components plants in India Bridgestone’s new plant will produce passenger car radial and truck and bus radial tyres in response to the increasing demand in India. The Japanese company expects capacity to reach 10,000 units/year by 2020. BorgWarner’s 6,000 sq m facility will provide manufacturing, engineering, sales and administrative space as well as room for future expansion. "In India, growing demand for mobility and adoption of global emissions standards are driving growth for BorgWarner's advanced technologies," said Dan CasaSanta, President. "With our new facility, BorgWarner will have the ability to expand existing product lines and introduce new technologies and products." Indian joint venture for SR production The SBR unit will utilise butadiene feed from Indian Oil's Panipat naphtha cracker complex located in Panipat. To be completed in 2012, the facility will supply rubber for the manufacture of automotive tyres, conveyors and fan belts. The shareholding of Indian Oil, TSRC and Marubeni in the joint venture is 50%, 30% and 20% respectively. Flexsys’s patents intact Flexsys's PPD2 process is used to manufacture key PPD intermediate 4-ADPA and is protected by valid patents until 2019. PPDs are used in the rubber and tyre industry. In March, the Korean Supreme Court dismissed the appeal of a lower court decision that found key claims of Flexsys' Korean patent to be valid, defeating attempts by a Chinese competitor to invalidate those claims. This decision follows similar rulings in January by the courts in China and Germany, dismissing attempts by the same competitor to invalidate Flexsys' PPD patents in those countries. Also in March, the European Patent Office rejected an attempt by another competitor to invalidate Flexsys's PPD patent in the European Union. March 2010 Higher NR output in India Production in February totalled 51,500 tonnes, compared with 48,259 tonnes in 2009. Production in the 11 months to February declined 4.3% to 780,750 tonnes. Rubber prices in India also jumped to a record high based on the fact that the low-output season in the world’s largest producing nations will lead to a shortage. India’s rubber output may drop to 835,000 tonnes this year because of adverse weather, intense harvesting last year and older plantations. Retread tyre markets good in Asia The manufacture of ESBR-BMB (emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber black masterbatch) at its production sites in Triunfo or Caxias in Brazil would serve to meet the growing raw material demands of the retread industry (some 18 million units strong) in the US and also supplement the company’s CoBR-BMB production capacity in Texas. BMB products are easier to process during compounding since there is no longer any need for the compounder to mix ESBR with carbon black and oil, says Lanxess. In addition, wet mixing during BMB manufacture leads to better dispersion of the filler particles, which can have a positive effect on the properties of the end product. The company also says that its entire range of oil-extended ESBR grades has been offered with "safe" processing oils since January. In addition, from April only metal boxes will be used for the primary packaging to offer customers better protection against contamination than is possible with wood or cardboard. In other news, Bridgestone recently opened a retreading centre in Bandag, Thailand, that will contribute to the development of the retread market in Asia. The centre will produce retread tyres, accelerate development for truck and bus tyre segments and will provide solutions-based business offerings using the Bandag retread manufacturing process, says the company. It will also conduct training for retreading businesses. Asian pull for Nd-PBR sees increase in capacity The extra capacities will go on stream between the first quarter of 2011 and 2012. The company says that there will be a worldwide product shortage for this type of material by 2014, which is being driven by the trend towards greater mobility, especially in Asia. In addition, the European Union approved in November 2009 a new regulation, which stipulates that by November 2012 new tyres sold in Europe have to be labelled for fuel efficiency, wet grip and external rolling noise. The aim of the legislation is to reduce CO2 and noise emissions by promoting green tyres that do not compromise on safety. In addition, the labels will provide more transparency to consumers and aid them in their purchase decisions. The tyres are to be categorised in a system of classes, with the best performance being labelled “Class A” and the poorest “Class G”. Tyre makers in Japan are voluntarily introducing tyre labels from the beginning of 2010, while the US is also evaluating similar labelling regulations. The expansions will also lead to an indirect increase in Solution Styrene Butadiene Rubber (SSBR) capacities at the company’s site in Port Jérôme, France. In addition, the company is adjusting processes at its site in Orange, Texas, to facilitate the production of SSBR. SSBR rubbers are used in the tread mix for high-performance tyres to reduce rolling resistance while also improving grip on wet roads. In January, Lanxess announced that it had brought forward plans to build a new butyl rubber facility in Singapore. The company will hold a groundbreaking ceremony there in May and production is expected to start in the first quarter of 2013. Production was previously earmarked for 2014. The 100,000 tonnes/year plant on Jurong Island will require an investment of up to EUR400 million. February 2010 Rubber prices reach an all-time high Futures in Tokyo gained as much as 3.3% to the highest level since September 2008. In China, the world’s largest rubber consumer, businesses continued to expand while US manufacturing continued to expand and factory bookings increased. Investors are buying the raw material on a speculative run against the back of better economic conditions while rising car sales in China will push the price of the commodity up since it is mainly used in tyres. Prices more than doubled last year, the best performance since at least 1976, according to Bloomberg. Raw materials may return more than financial assets this year for the first time in three years as the global economy rebounds, according to Bloomberg.
Improved roller head unit The production line sets new standards as regards quality due to the use of a cold-feed pin-type extruder that ensures gentle and uniform heating and mixing of the material, which is then processed to calendered sheets. Processors including manufacturers of rubber rollers benefit from a number of improved properties like better surface finish with smoother plates that are nearly 100% free of blisters. The new calendered sheets are available in thicknesses of 0.3 to 10 mm and a maximum width of 1,500 mm. The combination of automated roller gap adjustment and integrated online thickness measurement also ensures dimensional accuracy during production. The production line consists of the QSM 150 pin-type extruder with automated screenchange system; two-roller calender (600 x 2,000 mm) with hydraulic roller adjustment and continuously adjustable drive; laser monitoring of the dimensional accuracy and automated roller gap adjustment; four cooling drums; two semi-automatic centre winders with intermediate rotor unwinding station and process data recording with a roll weight of 30 to 500 kg. December 2009 Cloning to boost Malaysian rubber yield Malaysia, which used to be the world’s top producer of rubber, has slipped rank below Thailand, Indonesia and India – currently the leading producers. With the integration of the technology into the country’s production it is anticipated that it will regain its foothold in the market. The cloning technique can produce 2, 600 kg to 3,000 kg of latex per ha, says Ali Noordin Wahiddub, Deputy Director-General for Development at RISDA. The move can offset the impact of changing crops for cultivation and conversion of land to residential areas on the declining rubber yield. More than RM37.5 million has been allocated for the rubber replanting project in the state of Pahang that will start in 2010. About 20,000 ha nationwide will be utilised for RISDA’s replanting progamme. Rubber drop slows Global rubber production (both NR and SR) appeared to level off at 21.1 million tonnes during the third quarter, at which point the decline in output reached -10.9%. According to IRSG, the last time a fall of this magnitude was recorded was in August 1975. In the short term, following the declines seen in 2009 and assuming a relatively strong recovery in the world economy, global rubber consumption (both NR and SR) is forecast to reach 23.9 million tonnes in 2010, with NR production of 10.4 million tonnes. In the longer term, global rubber consumption is forecast to reach 30.4 million tonnes by 2019, with NR production of 14 million tonnes. Curbing rubber shortage with new technology The growth in the automotive industry and its consumer base has proportionally increased new rubber consumption and generated a waste land for old rubber tyres. Evidences show that the global demand for rubber has exceeded to 22 million tonnes/year and is likely to cause supply shortage and hike in the price of NR, which has already been up by 400% since 2001. The advanced materials and recycling technology, which works by the process of gasification, is quality-tested to bring viable and cost-effective commercial results for thousands of manufacturers as devulcanised rubber can be used for producing new rubber products. High viscosity rubber grade for tyres Buna CB 21 has a Mooney viscosity of 73 MU and features outstanding rebound resilience and particularly low heat build-up, making it ideal for cutting rolling resistance of car tyres. This is a key feature of significance, particularly with respect to the efficiency labelling of tyres that has already been mandated by the European Parliament. The rebound resilience of a rubber – closely linked to heat build-up under stress – is critical for rubber products subjected to dynamic loads. It is an indication of how economically an elastomer uses energy during deformation. High rebound resilience indicates that a rubber transfers a large proportion of the mechanical energy that is introduced, or releases this after loading, without converting it into heat and therefore wasting it. Rubber molecules that are as long as possible and have a uniform length/molecular weight are ideal for high rebound values. This makes a material of this type suitable for achieving a further significant decrease in tyre rolling resistance – essentially the proportion of drive energy converted into heat by rolling as a result of inevitable deformation – compared to products filled with silica. Latex conference next year Latex and Synthetic Polymers Dispersions 2010 will provide a forum to discuss all the latest market, technology and materials news, addressing perennial problems such as latex allergies and the need to find cost effective alternatives to natural latex, particularly in the face of rising oil prices. The conference will cover a wide range of applications from the use of water-based dispersions and latices as substitutes for solvent-based systems such as adhesives, sealants and coatings to the use of latex for condoms and disposable medical gloves. For information about this conference please visit www.polymerconferences.com or email conferences@ismithers.net November 2009 Tyre companies fare better in the third quarter Goodyear reported 15% lower sales, compared to 2008, but 11% higher than the second quarter. “The strength of our brands and steady stream of new and innovative tyres such as our branded fuel-efficient tyres provided marketplace momentum and led a strong third quarter performance,” said Robert J. Keegan, Chairman. During the third quarter, the company reduced its global work force by 300 positions, adding to approximately 5,500 first half reductions. The company’s full-year target was a reduction of 5,000 positions. Sales for Michelin, the world's second largest tyre maker, dropped 11% in the third quarter, compared to the same period last year. The company said its passenger car tyre sales were EUR2.09 billion, a 4.6% decrease. Truck tyres dropped to EUR1.21 billion, an 18% decrease. Michelin maintains its objective of generating positive free cash flow in the second half of 2009. Japanese Bridgestone, meanwhile, reported net sales of US$20.75 billion and operating income of 12 billion, a decrease of 25% and 90% respectively, compared to the previous fiscal year. Its net loss was US$303.37 million, while its net sales and operating income decreased by 24% and 83% respectively from last year. The company said unit sales of tyres in Japan and the US were down due to the impact of slumping demand brought on by a major decline in sales for passenger cars, light trucks, trucks and busses. The only bright spot was from South Korean Hankook Tire that had 26.4% higher sales and what it says is an “astounding” increase in operating profit of 536.4%. Hankook also attained a global operating profit rate of 19.1%. Said CEO Seung Hwa Suh, “Despite the economic climate, Hankook Tire has continued to stand out with its record high performance.” He also said that Hankook remains positive about growth prospects for the future. The US replacement sales in the third quarter jumped 18% over the second quarter and were 21% ahead of the same period for 2008. The most significant boost in sales has come in the ultra-high performance tyre segment. Expansion of rubber reclamation The DevulCO2 project to devulcanise rubber, which was completed last year, involves a continuous de-vulcanisation system for waste tyres combining supercritical carbon dioxide with chemical devulcanisation agents in an autoclave. Now, a new ReMould project has been set up to move the technology beyond tyres, to include other scrap rubber products, such as EPDM automotive weatherstrip. The project, which will expand into large scale production, will be used to manufacture a range of goods and also extend the technology into the production of extruded profiles. The ReMould consortium includes the original DevulCO2 project members, Smithers Rapra, PJH Partnership, Martins Rubber Company, BD Technical Polymer, J Allcock & Sons and Charles Lawrence International, plus Kingpin Tyres and the London Metropolitan University. Meanwhile, PMC Rubber Track Recycling has started a new crumbing business in Strathclyde, Scotland, which will reclaim tracks fitted to diggers and earth-moving equipment. The company has designed a machine, which will be patented, that removes the steel links from the tracks before shredding the rubber. Apart from the UK, PMC says it will sell the steel and rubber to South Korea, Dubai and China. According to PMC, no other company in the world offers a similar service and it has secured contracts with track supply companies Osprey Industrial and SPS (Southern Plant Spares). It says that approximately 70,000 rubber tracks are sent to landfills every year in the UK, amounting to more than 10,000 tonnes of steel and rubber. In related news, tyre shredding company Swiers and Grainger in York has now invested £62,845 in recycling equipment to widen the range of tyres it can handle, enabling it handle an extra 6,284 tonnes of rubber waste over the next three years. The company's existing shredder had the capacity to shred 360 tyres/hour but tyres had to be cut manually to feed it and the shredder could not be loaded fast enough to achieve its maximum capacity. The new investment includes a pre-shredder to automate tyre cutting, which means the main shredder can run to capacity, tripling productivity. The shredded rubber produced is used as flooring for riding arenas. October 2009 Dunlop Aircraft Tyres to record its centenary Said Chairman Ian Edmondson, "We are looking for people to help with memories, information or contacts and photographs that we can include – either about the firm itself or its place historically within the larger Dunlop/BTR organisation. Indeed it is the personal memories that will bring this book to life and, as so many people have either worked for Dunlop themselves or have had a friend or family at the company, we are sure that there are lots of stories out there ready to be told." For more information email century@dunlopatl.co.uk Elastic rubber grade for tyres Buna CB 21, with a Mooney viscosity of 73 MU, features improved rebound resilience and low heat build-up, making it useful for cutting the rolling resistance of car tyres. This is a key feature, particularly with respect to the efficiency labelling of tyres that has already been mandated by the European Parliament. The rebound resilience of a rubber – closely linked to heat build-up under stress – is critical for rubber products subjected to dynamic loads. It is an indication of how economically an elastomer uses energy during deformation. High rebound resilience indicates that a rubber transfers a large proportion of the mechanical energy that is introduced, or releases this after loading, without converting it into heat and therefore wasting it. Rubber molecules that are as long as possible and have a uniform length/molecular weight are ideal for high rebound values. This makes a material of this type suitable for achieving a further significant decrease in tire rolling resistance – essentially the proportion of drive energy converted into heat by rolling as a result of inevitable deformation – compared to products filled with silica. Though the new elastomer is initially being produced for the worldwide market at the company’s Dormagen site in Germany, other facilities such as those at Port Jérôme, France, and Orange, US, may also manufacture it in the future. Second leg of speciality chemical plant The pyrogenic silica plant, together with a siloxane plant, is a key facility of an integrated silicone manufacturing site developed by both companies at Jiangsu Yangtze River Chemical Industrial Park in Zhangjiagang to produce materials used extensively in industries, including construction, beauty and personal care, power and automotive. Covering an area of 1 million sq m, the site is China’s largest facility of this kind and said to be among the world’s largest and most advanced integrated production complexes for silicones. The overall nameplate capacity for both siloxane and pyrogenic silica, including the second phase silica plant, is expected to be 210,000 tonnes/year. Pyrogenic silica is a nano-structured speciality chemical. It can be used as an active filler in silicone elastomers, a viscosity-adjusting agent in coatings, printing inks, adhesives, unsaturated polyester resins and plastisols or as a flow aid, for example in the cosmetics, pharmaceutical and food-processing industries. Both companies also own manufacturing plants for finished silicone products at the Zhangjiagang site.
Curing by light While silicone elastomers (HCR) are typically vulcanised with peroxide catalyst cured by heat exposure, this new UV-sensitive, platinum catalysed curing system also allows curing at room temperature. Part geometries commonly produced by extrusion processing can be cured within significantly reduced times compared to conventional silicone elastomers. Over the past decade, the demand for silicone elastomers has grown steadily as the market shifted to the use of silicone as a replacement for other organic materials, largely due to the stringent biocompatibility, food contact and higher heat requirements imposed upon these materials. In particular, addition cure materials are increasingly being used in medical or food contact and water applications, due to a lack of peroxide residues, as well as FDA and BfR conformity. UV cure technology can help provide energy savings and increased extrusion speed while maintaining the physical properties of silicone elastomers. The UV exposure time for the cure can be as short as 0.5 seconds, depending on the speed of the line and UV intensity. As the cure is initiated through UV radiation, the speed of cure is independent of the diameter and the cross-section of the extruded tube or profile. This allows high-speed extrusion without the risk of under-curing. Since the cure of the new UV silicone elastomers occurs at room temperature, this new technology also opens the potential for co-extrusion of silicones with temperature sensitive materials such as polyolefins and thermoplastic elastomers, which is not possible with traditional thermal cure silicone elastomers. September 2009
100-year old SR still in the spotlight “Even after a 100 years, the potential of synthetic rubber is far from exhausted,” said Axel Heitmann, Chairman of Lanxess, at the day-long forum that had 14 speakers. He went on to say that no one could have predicted that the product would still be so successful a hundred years later. “We are building on the versatility and outstanding chemical properties of this material because we know that the future of synthetic rubber has only just begun.” The material remains important to Lanxess’s portfolio, accounting for over 50% of its turnover. “We expect a 3% increase in global sales this year. Strong growth is expected in butyl rubber because 85% of its output is directed towards global production of tyres,” said Heitmann, adding that increased momentum for the material is being seen in China, India, South America and Southeast Asia. Heitmann said that, given the current economic situation, demand for SR was picking up “at low levels”. But he added, “We do not know if the demand is sustainable and it will take a long time before the prices get back to the 2007/08 levels.” The company is also continuously expanding its product range, which at the last count was a hundred, and has committed an additional 10% spending on R&D, despite the global downturn and cost cutting measures. The importance of R&D at Lanxess was emphasised by Heitmann who spoke about the new technology innovation the company is working on, with a few partners, to be implemented at its Singapore butyl rubber plant, which will now start up in 2014 after having been delayed. “We cannot disclose details now, but you will all be surprised!” At the forum, Lanxess also highlighted a new HNBR (hydrogenated nitrile rubber) grade that is said to be “as liquid as oil” and is expected to open up a new area of use in gaskets. The other new innovation, Nanoprene nanoadditive, was recently commercialised with Japanese company Toyo Tire being its first taker. When added to tyre production, it has no detrimental impact on rolling resistance and wet grip but reduces abrasion, which extends the lifespan of the tyre. Amongst the speakers at the forum was Georg Weiberg of Daimler Trucks who said that reducing fuel consumption and achieving maximum vehicle reliability were the most important challenges for the automotive industry of the future. Daimler's objective was to cut fuel consumption by 20% by the year 2020 by lowering the weight of the vehicles, improving the rolling resistance of tyres and developing special wheel trims. Another speaker Didier Miraton, Managing Partner of the Michelin Group, said, ”We must look even further ahead and begin to dream if we want to prepare ourselves for the future.” He said that the company recognised that fuel saving tyres would be important for mobility in the future and have therefore been working on this for 15 years. Meanwhile, Horst Wildemann, Professor at the Technical University in Munich, suggested that development teams should be bold enough to explore new avenues having already spent 100 years with this flexible material. “We still have a growth potential of 5-9% in Europe for synthetic rubber,” he said. Fritz Katzensteiner, Managing Director of the WDK – the Association of the German rubber industry – said there are still wide-ranging possibilities for expansion above all in the automotive industry but also in medical technology and sports. He said the main challenges were the development of new, environmentally friendlier substitutes for rubber production, the breaking down of international trade barriers and man's changing mobility. China fights back US penalties The decision by the US government to impose added duties on tyres that come from China resulted in strong complaints from Chinese tyre companies. The Chinese government is accusing the US of promoting protectionism and is said to be mulling over the lodging of a formal complaint to the World Trade Organisaion. Meanwhile, in the US, penalties on products from China are welcomed by the United Steelworkers union, people who are important to the President's healthcare plan push. The union says that imports of Chinese tyres in recent years led to the closure of five US tyre plants and the loss of thousands of jobs. The union represents about 15,000 hourly workers who make tyres in the US for Goodyear, Bridgestone and Michelin. Imported Chinese tyres to the US totalled less than 15 million in 2004 but rose to more than 46 million in 2008. But not everyone welcomes the additional tariffs especially Cooper Tire & Rubber, which is a major importer of Chinese tyres, Toyo Tire Holdings of America (a subsidiary of the Japanese company), tyre importers and the farming community that is afraid of a Chinese boycott of American agriculture products. Rubber consumption at its lowest The year-on-year consumption growth at the same point was -12.3% and this compares to a growth rate of -3.5% reached in March 2002, at the height of the last global economic downturn. The global synthetic rubber (SR) production declined by 13.7%, in year-on-year terms in June 2009, while global natural rubber (NR) production fell by 3.7%. The more pronounced decline in global consumption compared to global production has moved the NR market into modest surplus. Global NR consumption is projected to fall by 5.5% in the 2009 calendar year, while SR demand is forecast to decline by 7.3%; meanwhile, global NR production is projected to fall by 4.8% in 2009. Using a more pessimistic global economic growth scenario, with 2009 and 2010 growth rates set at 0.4%, below those forecast by the IMF, which form the base scenario, results in 0.9-1.9% lower rubber consumption over the period. Under a more optimistic scenario, in which global growth in 2010 recovers to its 2008 level, rubber consumption would be 0.7-2.1% higher than the base scenario. Dow beefs up SR capabilities The new laboratory will be for the compounding, mixing, processing and testing of thermoset elastomers and will complement the existing polymer analysis, material science and physical testing capabilities at the site. Meanwhile, at its Louisiana plant, the company is expanding its output to add around 11,000 tonnes of capacity through process improvements. This is due to be completed in the first quarter of next year. August 2009 Nanoprene to drive the tyre market These microgels, which consist of nanoscale organic particles, can be used to improve the material properties of elastomer and thermoplastic materials. Lanxess’s Technical Rubber Products (TRP) and Rhein Chemie business units worked together closely and have applied for numerous patents. These cover the processing method, the use of nanoparticles in rubber mixtures and the impact on thermoplastic and thermoset polymers. The product will be sold as Nanoprene by TRP while Rhein Chemie sells the additive under the brand name Micromorph. Rhein Chemie worked with Japanese tyre manufacturer Toyo Tire to incorporate the additive in the production of winter tyres, said to boast dry and wet road grip, without the tyre rubber hardening on contact with snow or ice. Different Nanoprene grades can be used to satisfy different requirement profiles for winter/summer tyres and various tyre components (tread, side wall and carcass) in line with their glass transition temperature. The physical properties of rubber give rise to a conflict of objectives – also known as the magic triangle of tyre technology – between certain parameters of the rubber. For example, improving wet grip in the past was only achieved at the cost of higher rolling resistance and, therefore, greater fuel consumption. Using the new nanoparticles as an additive can improve all three properties of the magic triangle – wet grip, rolling resistance and service life of tyres. Lanxess says in tests it conducted, using Nanoprene in summer tyres, for example, improves dry road grip by between 10 and 15%. It also improves the stiffness of the tread blocks, which has a positive impact on the cornering properties under aquaplaning conditions. The abrasion resistance of tyre treads containing Nanoprene is also much higher than those based on standard silica mixtures. In principle, Nanoprene consists of pre-crosslinked rubber particles that are manufactured by the German company using a patented emulsion process. Different conditions can be achieved during the synthesis process, for example in terms of the degree of crosslinking (glass transition temperature) or polarity of the particles, depending on the required application. With particle sizes ranging between 40 and 200 nanometers, Nanoprene has a large specific surface area, which leads to improved distribution and joining of the silica filler to the polymer matrix. After the manufacturing process, the rubber additive is available in the usual delivery forms such as bales, granules, powders, pastes and masterbatches. July 2009 Carbon REACH The consortium includes Evonik Degussa, Cabot, Columbian Chemicals, Timcal Belgium, Sid Richardson Carbon & Energy, Continental Carbon and Cancarb. After validating the completeness of the dossier, ECHA issued the registration number for carbon black to Evonik Degussa, which acted as lead registrant on behalf of the consortium. The submission included both the technical dossier and the chemical safety report. Once the remaining consortium members file their supplementary registration documents, all seven companies will be fully registered ahead of the November 2010 deadline. The consortium invites other interested companies to participate in the joint submission of the Carbon Black Consortium by way of a letter of access. More information is available at: www.cb4reach.eu/. Lanxess delays butyl plant to focus on new technology The 100,000 tonnes/year plant will now start up in 2014 instead of 2011. The company says the delay in the project is due to the lower demand for butyl. Lanxess is also working on a new technology for the production process, which has so far been tested on a pilot plant. Touting it as a more energy-efficient, cost effective and environmentally friendly technology, Lanxess plans to invest what it says is a substantial sum in researching it over the next few years. Meanwhile, the company has not totally given up on Singapore and it is looking at moving its butyl rubber headquarters from Switzerland to the Asian country. It is currently negotiating with the Singapore Economic Development Board with a view to managing the global business of the butyl rubber business unit from here in the future. June 2009
Self-healing elastomer May 2009 Barwell goes global and invests in China German company looks to Asia for growth Environmentally friendly tyres in Europe by 2012 Tillotson licenses glove technology to Ansell April 2009 New plant in India inaugurated Rhein Chemie sales drop March 2009 Malaysia to maintain its pricing for NR Tyrexpo Asia sells out in Singapore |
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