As announced in November 2016, BASF is investing more than €200 million globally to increase its production network for plastic additives. An
important step is an investment to build a
new plastic additives plant at its Caojing
site in Shanghai, China. This world-scale
plant, with an annual capacity of 42,000
tons, will produce antioxidants and associated forms and blends. It is expected to
be completed in 2019, with commercial
production to start by early 2020.
“Asia, and particularly the Chinese
market, offer significant growth op-
portunities, driven by diverse applica-
tions including packaging, construction,
consumer goods, automotive and many
more,” said Hermann Althoff, Senior
Vice President of BASF’s Performance
Chemicals unit in Asia Pacific. “The plant
will be built to reach high environmen-
tal standards and have one of the most
efficient production processes. Located
within the Caojing complex, it will also
benefit from its proximity to our regional
application center in Shanghai that pro-
vides technical support to polymer pro-
ducers and to the converting industry
within the region.”
Antioxidants help prevent thermal
oxidation reactions when plastics are
processed at high temperatures, and
light-assisted oxidation when plastics
are exposed to UV light. Oxidation can
cause loss of impact strength, elongation,
surface cracks and discoloration of the
material. Almost all polymer materials
undergo oxidative degradation reactions
at one or all of the manufacturing, pro-
cessing and end-use stages.
BASF runs a global production network
and is the only supplier of plastic additives
having production sites in Asia, Europe,
North America and the Middle East.
Sun Chemical Acquires RJA
Dispersions Business
Sun Chemical Corporation has acquired
the assets and business of RJA Dispersions
LLC, effective March 1, 2017.
Based in Hudson, Wis. of the United
States, RJA Dispersions is a leader in
ultra-fine particle and pigment dispersions for the digital inks market.
Primarily used for energy cure (UV),
eco-solvent and aqueous inkjet inks,
RJA’s full range of dispersions will join
Sun Chemical Performance Pigments’
diverse product lineup.
“RJA Dispersions is a technology-
based company with an excellent repu-
tation for its innovative, high-quality
and cutting-edge specialty dispersions
for the rapidly growing digital market,”
said Myron Petruch, president of Sun
Chemical Performance Pigments and
Executive Officer of Sun Chemical’s par-
ent company, DIC Corporation. “This is
an excellent bolt-on acquisition for our
global pigments business and will imme-
diately expand our product offerings for
this growing market segment. This acqui-
sition supports our strategy of continuing
to expand our global pigments business
into sustainable high growth, high value
product lines and markets.”
RJA Dispersions will become part of
Sun Chemical’s Performance Pigments’
digital business unit led by Peter
O’Loughlin. As the director of digital,
O’Loughlin will lead the RJA Dispersions
integration and be responsible for the
global growth of the combined product
portfolio of this business unit.
Frost & Sullivan Commends
Lonza for Introducing
Proxel LS
Based on its recent analysis of the in-can
preservation market, Frost & Sullivan
recognized Lonza with the 2016 Global
Frost & Sullivan Award for Product
Leadership. In a market characterized
by mostly incremental product develop-
ment, Lonza’s latest release, the Proxel
LS Preservative, is revolutionizing both
chemical architecture and product per-
formance. Lonza’s innovative Proxel
product portfolio meets the functional
needs of customers, and simultaneously
keeps pace with the developments in var-
ious end-user industries such as paints
and coatings, adhesives, and construc-
tion chemicals.
The Proxel LS’ market performance
validates Lonza’s deep understanding of
customer needs. For instance, when the
EU mandated a significant lowering of
methylisothiazolinone (MIT) levels in
formulations, Lonza launched a product that used two complementary active
ingredients—benzisothiazolinone (BIT)
and pyrithione. This move helped future-proof the product because these ingredients not only enhanced antimicrobial
efficacy, but also eliminated issues of toxicity from the formulation. In short, this
breakthrough product offers unmatched
broad-spectrum performance at dosages
that will not impact the EU H208 allergen phrase.
“Proxel LS Preservative is easy to
formulate and provides increased dura-
bility, higher water solubility, and most
importantly, cost-efficiency,” said Frost
& Sullivan Industry manager Deepak
Karthikeyan. “Furthermore, it is free of
formaldehyde, stable across a wide range
of temperatures and pH conditions, and
biodegradable in effluent systems.”
While the Proxel LS Preservative has
proven ideal for the paints and coatings
industry, it is also finding wide applica-
tion in an array of allied areas such as
inks, emulsions, and binders, as well as
adhesives, non-food contact paper, cellu-
losic materials, and construction chemi-
cals. It is available in different forms in
a range of strengths. The company is
moving a step ahead in the value chain
by expanding its formulation capabilities,
which will help it develop next-genera-
tion, customizable solutions.
Lonza has also fostered strong customer relations with its global customer
base of major coatings and adhesives
manufacturers. In addition to exceptional
BASF to Invest in New Plastic
Additives Plant in Shanghai, China
