drophobically modified HEC product line
at its Parlin, N.J., plant. Natrosol HEC is a
cellulosic polymer used as an additive in a
wide variety of water-based consumer and
industrial products including latex paints,
paper coatings and personal care items such
as shampoos and shower gels.
ILC Performance Products
acquires Halox
ICL Performance Products, a global specialty phosphate producer, has acquired
Halox, a division of Hammond Group,
Inc. The Hammond, Ind.-based company
is an industry leader in specialty phos-phate-based, corrosion inhibitor products
for the paint and coating industry, which
are sold under the Halox brand name. The
acquisition closed October 1, 2011.
“Halox is a highly respected leader in
the market for corrosion-resistant coat-
ings with an outstanding reputation for
quality and service,” said James Moffatt,
president of ICL Performance Products LP
(Americas). “This acquisition will extend
our technical phosphate specialties offer-
ings for the paints and coatings sector
while expanding our operations in the
Americas, thereby strengthening our posi-
tion as a global leader in the specialty
phosphates industry.”
The acquisition includes Halox’s re-
search and development activities and
manufacturing assets, as well as Halox’s
extensive distribution network for its
phosphates-based products. Halox will
operate as a division of ICL Performance
Products LP.
Lubrizol enhances global
testing capabilities
Lubrizol Additives, a business segment of
The Lubrizol Corporation, has made enhancements to its global research and testing capabilities. In the past three years,
Lubrizol has invested more than $35 million to support R&D and testing activities, with another $50 million budgeted
for the next three years. This is in addition
to extensive capital investment in operations, which includes more than $200 million for a new plant in China.
Chemical synthesis and applied sciences laboratories at Lubrizol’s Wickliffe
facility—site of the largest technical center
and world headquarters of Lubrizol Additives and The Lubrizol Corporation—are
undergoing extensive modernization. New
laboratory spaces conform with industry
best practices in order to deliver results
faster and more efficiently, while encouraging collaboration and innovation.
Ultimately, up to 100 researchers and
scientists will be based in these advanced facilities. Mechanical testing laboratories
have also undergone significant upgrades to
support customers’ product development
and performance claims. Additional investments include multi-million dollar rigs to
measure transmission efficiency, safety and
environmental upgrades that include the
use of highly energy-efficient electric motors
and dynamometers, and updated fuel inventory and delivery systems.
Significant investments are underway
at Lubrizol’s global technical center in
Hazelwood, UK. These investments include recently completed major upgrades
of chemical testing laboratories as well as
ongoing improvements to the Hazelwood
chemical synthesis facility. A new, previously announced Lubrizol Additives laboratory on the campus of Jilin University
in Zhuhai, Guandong, China will offer
advanced technical services for lubricant,
fuel and industrial additive customers and
OEMs throughout Asia. Capabilities will
encompass a full menu of services including additive and lubricant blending, physical and chemical analyses, as well as
performance testing. Construction on the
new technical services laboratory at Jilin
University is complete, and the lab is expected to be functional later this year.
Updates to blending and testing service capabilities at Lubrizol Japan Ltd.’s
technical facility in Kinuura, Japan are recently complete. New viscometers and
friction and shear stability testing equipment are among the improvements. Likewise, comprehensive field-testing
equipment is now integrated into the
modernized facility.
Renovations to Lubrizol technical capabilities in Mumbai, India include the consolidation of several existing labs into a
modern lab facility capitalizing on synergistic resources. The purchase of new testing equipment will help ensure timely,
enhanced and valuable services. Other new
equipment will broaden overall
testing capabilities and meeting
space will allow for customer
training as well. The result will be
the creation of a world-class laboratory infrastructure designed to meet the significant
increase in demand for lubricant testing expected to occur in India within the next five
years. Completion is targeted for mid 2012.
These technical facilities will be linked
as part of Lubrizol’s global R&D and testing capabilities with access to Lubrizol’s advanced computer network, providing
immediate, 24-hour access to global data.
Arkema inaugurates latest
plants for fluorinated polymers
and rheology additives in
China
Arkema recently inaugurated two new
plants for fluorinated polymers and rheology additives on the Changshu industrial platform in China. At the same time,
Arkema also laid the foundation stone of
its future research and development center
in China, marking the group’s second such
center in Asia.
Arkema said its growth objectives in
Asia include achieving 25 percent of its
sales their by 2015, half of which will
come from China.
Located 120 km south of Shanghai, the
Changshu industrial platform is now
Arkema’s largest manufacturing site in the
world. It represents Arkema’s main industrial base in China, with productions in
many specialty chemicals including fluo-rogases, fluorinated polymers, specialty
polyamides, acrylic derivatives, organic
peroxides, among others.
The new plant dedicated to the production of fluorinated polymers under the
Kynar brand name was started in Changshu in the spring of this year. Arkema said
it helps them partner the development of
their customers in Asia, and fulfill more
effectively the fast-growing demand in the
paint, offshore and chemical engineering
markets, as well as in emerging applications such as batteries, photovoltaics and
water treatment.
Arkema is already planning to increase by 50 percent this new plant’s capacity by the summer of 2012.
With the startup in early August of the
