MOSCOW (MRC) -- Lanxess' largest production line for the Keltan-branded EPDM synthetic rubber in Sittard, Geleen, The Netherlands, has been successfully converted to the company’s innovative ACE technology, reported the company on its site.
"This is another important step into an even more sustainable future with Lanxess," said Torsten Derr, Head of Lanxess’ business unit Keltan Elastomers (KEL). "We have also completed this conversion on time and in budget."
The German pioneer in synthetic rubbers development has invested roughly EUR12 million to convert the production line from conventional Ziegler-Natta chemistry to its innovative ACE-process. The new line - EPT 3 - has a capacity of 95,000 metric tons per year. This is more than half of the total capacity at that plant. It is currently the world’s largest metallocene ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) plant with an annual capacity of 180,000 metric tons.
"This launch is the result of considerable long term R&D efforts conducted by the EPDM-experts at today‘s Lanxess Business Unit Keltan Elastomers," explained Derr.
The ACE process, utilizing outstandingly active catalysts, enables LANXESS to deliver an extraordinarily broad range of proven, high-quality EPM and EPDM grades - in consistent quality, chlorine-free and with high degrees of purity. Above that, the process consumes less energy and produces no catalyst waste, what makes a deashing step obsolete.
Lanxess’ current range of EPDM rubbers already comprises seven ACE-grades: "The introduction of these grades from the EPT-3 line is the result of an extensive technology and product validation including several test runs on one of the smaller production lines at the Geleen site," said Derr. Validation samples of the new ACE grades were tested during a one year period in the market before the start up of the new production line. ACE grades are already being sold to customers.
EPDM is used above all in the automotive industry for door sealants or coolant hoses.
And the ACE story will be going global soon: "Our Changzhou plant in Jiangsu Province, China, starting up in 2015, will also work with ACE-technology. We are prepared to lead EPDM into a bright future," said Derr.
The plant will have a capacity of 160,000 metric tons per year and represents an investment of EUR235 million, the largest capex project the company has made in China to date.
We remind that, as MRC reported earlier, Lanxess had broken ground for its new neodymium-based performance butadiene rubber (Nd-PBR) plant in Singapore. The German specialty chemicals company is investing roughly EUR200 million in a 140,000 metric tons per annum facility on Jurong Island.
LANXESS is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR9.1 billion in 2012. The company is currently represented at 50 production sites worldwide. The core business of Lanxess is the development, manufacturing and marketing of plastics, rubber, intermediates and specialty chemicals. Lanxess' first-quarter sales were down by 12% year-on-year to EUR2.1 billion, mainly due to lower volumes and fallen selling prices.
MRC