Kraiburg, Eastman collaborates to develop medical grade TPE

Kraiburg, Eastman collaborates to develop medical grade TPE

Kraiburg TPE collaborated with Eastman to develop a range of innovative high-purity TPEs. They have developed a range of THERMOLAST^® M thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) with the capability to adhere directly to specialized polymers used in medical applications, including Eastman’s Tritan™ copolyester, PP, ABS, ABS/PC, and PET. “We are in the process of expanding our portfolio for the medical and pharmaceutical markets and for this purpose we are focusing on developing new materials for innovative products,” said Oliver Kluge, business unit manager medical applications, Kraiburg TPE. Read More

BASF launches antioxidants manufacturing plant in Shanghai

BASF inaugurated a new, world-scale antioxidants manufacturing plant at its Caojing site in Shanghai, China. With an annual capacity of 42,000 tons, the plant will produce antioxidants and associated forms and blends for the plastic additives market. The units for powder blending, liquid antioxidants and formgiving are now operational as part of the plant’s first phase. “With this investment, we strengthen our position as the leading global supplier of antioxidants. We expect the market will show attractive growth rates in the medium to long term,” said Markus Kamieth, Member of the Board of Directors, BASF SE. Read More

Lanxess expands new range of reverse osmosis elements

Lanxess is expanding its range of membrane elements for reverse osmosis (RO). The new Lewabrane HP (high performance) series comprises elements that consist of an enhanced brackish water membrane to serve applications in which high rejection and energy efficiency are important. Using the new types in combination with monodisperse Lewatit ion exchange resins provides high quality produced water at lower operational cost.  With an average salt rejection of 99.7 percent and high permeability, the new product types are a further development of the high cross-linked polyamide membrane which Lanxess launched in 2012. Read More

Archroma launches optical brightening agent for food packaging

Archroma announced the introduction of a new optical brightening agent (OBA) specially designed for food packaging and paper, Leucophor^® AFCN liq. The newly launched OBA has been approved for food contact by the US food and drug administration. A growing part of food containers are made from renewable sources, such as paper and board. It is necessary to ensure that these paper containers are free from substances that would be harmful for the consumer. Leucophor^® AFCN liq was designed with these guiding principles: 1. Leucophor^® AFCN liquid has approval for use in food-contact paper and paperboard under FDA Food Contact Notification. Read More

Future of Specialty Chemicals Industry

Future of Specialty Chemicals Industry

Specialty chemical manufacturers by nature are vastly very innovative and entrepreneurial, and R&D of new chemistries continues to be a vital component of the specialty chemical businesses. Adding to the point the resurgence of key market segments is dependent on specialty chemicals and new project starts, these significant factors are fuelling the persuasive growth. Specialty chemicals are chemical products that are traded on the basis of their performance or function, rather than their composition. Therefore manufacturers can create a niche market for products having stable margins. Read More

How 3D Printing is transforming the Chemical Industry?

3D printing is the process of manufacturing a 3D object from CAD data. It is also known as additive manufacturing because it is manufactured by placing successive layers of material. A 3D model can be created from scratch with a 3D modelling software or a digital model of an object can be created with a 3D scanner. The digital model is translated to a real object using a 3D printer. Transformation of the chemical industry through 3D printing: 3D printing is an innovative technology, which has already been incorporated by the chemical industry. Since its commercialization in the 1980s, it has been growing and its implementation in the chemical industry has increased. Read More

Waters introduces new amino acid analysis kit

Waters Corporation introduced a new amino acid analysis kit that reduces the time required to quantify amino acids, a critical application for research scientists investigating the physiological underpinnings of disease. The new Kairos™ amino acid analysis kit is capable of cutting analytical run times that can range up to two hours to run times of 10 minutes or less when used as directed with supported Waters™ UPLC systems, mass spectrometers and waters targeted omics method library. “After looking at how long it takes to get results on a limited set of amino acids, and at the accuracy and precision of those results, we decided we could do better. Read More

Lanxess presents additive for rubber processing in Mumbai

Lanxess presented its broad range of additives for the rubber processing industry at the India Rubber Expo 2019. During the event in Mumbai, the specialty chemicals company is showcasing solutions and methods which increase productivity and reduce health risks for its customers. The comprehensive portfolio includes additives for the manufacture of high-end rubber components for a significant number of diverse applications. “We are manufacturing a range of specialty polymer- and silica-bound rubber additives in India for the Indian market offering our customers products of consistently high quality, taking responsibility for their availability and making newest product solutions with higher health and safety standards available,” said Dr. Christian Lumpe, Head of business line Rubber Additives at the LANXESS Rhein Chemie (RCH) business unit. Read More

Digital Transformation in Healthcare Industry

Digital Transformation in Healthcare Industry

The health care industry is confronting a tremendous third evolutionary wave of digital technology with implications to profound believe in the new era of global computing. Certainly, for all industries, digital transformation will be galvanized by the initial technology such as mobility, Internet of Things (IoT), and big data. Through the advent application of internet, healthcare industry is poised to benefit from the ubiquitous and real-time retrieval of contextual information facilitated by the new technologies which drives the digital transformation. Role of Digitalization– Data Security: The secured physical records of a organizations are always in the possibility of getting misplaced during some unexpected conditions like staff negligence or disaster. Read More

Tata Chemicals, Government of India signs MoU on lithium ion batteries

Tata Chemicals Limited signed a MoU with C-MET, an autonomous scientific society under Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, Government of India. The MoU is to develop collaborative technology for the recovery and purification of cathode and anode active ingredients from spent lithium-ion cells / batteries. Under the MOU, TCL and C-MET envisage a partnership that will leverage C-MET’s intellectual property, capabilities and infrastructure, to test and validate multiple recycling chemistries. This partnership is in line with the commitment of Tata Chemicals to develop a Sustainable Circular Economy, as the company explores innovative and sustainable processes to manufacture Lithium-ion batteries for various applications. Read More

Sika acquires leading mortar solution manufacturer from CVC Fund V

Sika has made a binding offer to acquire Parex from its current owner CVC Fund V. Parex is a leading manufacturer of mortar solutions including facade mortars, tile adhesives, waterproofing, and technical mortars. Parex has a particularly strong presence in distribution channels, combining recognized brands with R&D expertise and technical excellence. It is locally present in 23 countries with key positions in 8 core geographies and operates 74 plants around the world. “The businesses of Parex and Sika are highly complementary. Parex’s excellent facade business can be leveraged in the entire Sika world,” said Paul Schuler, CEO of Sika. Read More

TechnipFMC, MMHE signs long term offshore agreement with Saudi Aramco

TechnipFMC in consortium with MMHE (Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Sdn Bhd), has signed a Long-Term Offshore Agreement with Saudi Aramco. This agreement, valid for 6 years, covers engineering, procurement, fabrication, transportation and installation of offshore facilities for the development of Saudi Aramco’s offshore projects. This agreement builds on the long-term relationship between TechnipFMC and Saudi Aramco, as well as the strong partnership between TechnipFMC and MMHE. “We are very pleased to extend our partnership with Saudi Aramco and to support their ambitious offshore development program. Read More

Sabic, ExxonMobil to establish JV on petrochemical complex in Louisiana

Sabic, ExxonMobil to establish JV on petrochemical complex in Louisiana

Sabic and an affiliate of Exxon Mobil Corporation are considering the potential development of a jointly owned petrochemical complex on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The project would be located in Texas or Louisiana near natural gas feedstock and include a world-scale steam cracker and derivative units. Before making final investment decisions, the companies will conduct necessary studies and work with state and local officials to help identify a potential site with adequate infrastructure access. “We are focused on geographic diversification to supply new markets. The proposed venture would capture competitive feedstock and reinforce Sabic’s strong position in the value chain,” said Yousef Abdullah Al-Benyan, Sabic vice chairman and chief executive officer. Read More

Hikma signs niche injectable anti-viral medicine agreement with Sciecure

Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC (Hikma, Group) announced an exclusive license, supply and distribution agreement between its wholly-owned subsidiary Hikma Pharmaceuticals International Limited and Beijing Sciecure Pharmaceutical Co Ltd (Sciecure), a leading Chinese company. The agreement provides Hikma with exclusive rights to sell one of Sciecure’s niche injectable anti-viral medicines across US for a minimum of eight years. Sciecure expects to file this product for approval with the US Food and Drug Administration in early 2019. “We are thrilled to partner with Sciecure, an innovative and vertically integrated company capable of producing high-quality products across the pharmaceutical spectrum from API to finished doses. Read More

Albemarle begins earthworks for Australian Kemerton project

Albemarle Corporation announced that it has begun earthworks at the Kemerton Strategic Industrial Area, in Western Australia. This is for the construction of the company’s Kemerton lithium hydroxide (LiOH) conversion site. Albemarle recently received the required environmental approval from the Australian federal and state government for the Kemerton plant. “The site earthworks at Kemerton today are on track with our projections. Achieving this milestone underscores our commitment and confidence in developing LiOH operations in Western Australia and in our overall strategy to drive significant shareholder value and meet our customers’ demands,” said Eric Norris, Albemarle President, Lithium. Read More

Clariant reduces stake in Stahl group by 25 percent

Clariant announced that it reduced its stake in the Netherlands-based Stahl group by 25 % from 19.7% to 14.8%. Clariant will remain invested in the company as a financial investor. Stahl is a producer of high- quality chemicals, dyes, and coatings for leather and other applications and has about 2000 employees. In 2014 Clariant sold its Leather Service business to the Stahl group for a cash consideration and a 24 % stake in the acquiring group. Read More