Milliken starts up PP clarifier plant in S Carolina

Milliken started a new clarifier plant in Blacksburg, South Carolina, in the US, said the US-based specialty chemicals company.

The plant will increase by 50% the company's capacity to produce the polypropylene (PP) clarifier Millad NX 8000, the company said. It should reach full capacity by the end of the year.

Milliken did not disclose the capacity.

We remind, Milliken, an American polymer additives and coloring company, has launched a new masterbatch plant to increase the clarity of polypropylene (PP) in Blacksburg, South Carolina, USA. The plant will increase the company's masterbatch capacity by 50% to increase the clarity of Millad NX 8000 polypropylene (PP).

Milliken & Company is a diversified company that has been in business since 1865. The corporate headquarters is located in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The company operates in a wide variety of areas: the chemical industry, flooring, performance and protective textiles, and healthcare.
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MRC) -- Encina Development Group, LLC announced the first-ever production of high purity aromatics made entirely from end-of-life mixed plastics, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Encina has delivered its high purity monomer chemicals to customers and confirms that ongoing production will continue.

David Roesser, PhD, CEO of Encina stated, “Encina’s delivery of on-specification, circular chemicals is a major milestone for the company, as it validates our goal to deliver high purity ISCC+ chemical solutions for our customers on a global basis; the feedback from everyone has been overwhelmingly positive."

Encina operates a circular chemicals facility in San Antonio, Texas and recently completed an expansion phase with engineering and construction work undertaken by Chemex Global, LLC of The Woodlands, Texas. The facility is designed to accept mixed end-of-life plastics, which are then catalytically converted into circular chemicals for Encina’s customers.

"According to the EPA, less than 10% of plastics are currently recycled,” said Carlo Badiola, Senior Vice President of Engineering & Technology. “Encina’s large-scale solution being deployed next year will enable the diversion of 450,000 tons of mixed plastic streams from landfills or incineration to manufacture ISCC+ circular chemicals to help our customers meet their ongoing sustainability goals."

We remind, US-based plastics recycling start-up Encina plans to produce benzene, toluene and mixed xylenes (BTX) as well as propylene from its planned new USD1.1bn project in Point Township, Pennsylvania, US. The Point Township Circular Manufacturing Facility would use Encina’s proprietary fluidized catalytic system and consume 450,000 tonnes/year of mixed waste plastics, a company spokesperson confirmed. Construction is expected to begin in the autumn of 2022, and the facility is expected to be fully operational by the autumn of 2024.
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Venezuela's second largest refinery has suspended gasoline production following an internal electrical failure, four sources with knowledge of the situation said, as per Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Work was being carried out on Sunday to resume operations of the Cardon crude oil reformer and distiller, one of the sources said.

A blackout took place on Saturday afternoon at the facility, which has the capacity to process 310,000 bpd of crude, and although power has returned to the facility, production at the refinery remains halted.

"They have already fixed the fault, the light has returned, but everything is still stopped. The start-up process or protocol have begun, but you know that when they stop abruptly, it takes time (to resume operations)," one source told Reuters.

The Cardon refinery is part of the 955,000-bpd Paraguana Refining Center on Venezuela's Western coast. Venezuela's state company PDVSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

An intermittent scarcity of fuel has hit the South American country in recent years as PDVSA's aging refineries operate at a fraction of its 1.3 MMbpd joint capacity and as U.S. sanctions block the arrival of imported gasoline.

As per MRC, Venezuela's state oil and gas company PDVSA has restarted gasoline production at the country's second largest refinery after repairing a breakdown. The Cardon refinery's naphtha reformer, with a capacity of 45,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), produces high-octane components for gasoline and is key to the country's gasoline supply. PDVSA commissioned it with an output of about 28,000 bpd about a fortnight ago.
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Toyota Tsusho Corporation announced that it has agreed via Toyota Tsusho (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. with NIPPON SHOKUBAI CO., LTD. on a joint capital participation in Hunan Fluopont New Materials Co., Ltd., said the company.

Recently, as battery electric vehicles and other electric vehicles are increasingly popularized, demand for lithium-ion batteries is increasing. This is because lithium-ion battery that uses electrolytic lithium salt for lithium-ion battery (LiFSI: lithium bis (fluorosulfonyl) imide) as electrolyte can solve various battery-proper issues such as reduced performance at extreme temperatures and service life.

Recently the number of battery electric vehicles and other electric vehicles are on the rise, and so is demand for lithium-ion batteries. Demand for electrolytic lithium salt for lithium-ion battery (LiFSI: lithium bis (fluorosulfonyl) imide) has been rapidly growing as LiFSI solves various battery-proper issues such as performance reduction and service life at extreme low and high temperatures.

Through this capital participation, Toyota Tsusho will commit to sales of LiFSI produced at Hunan Fluopont to electrolytic solution makers not only in China but also in Japan, other Asian countries and Europe, leveraging its global sales network.

Hunan Fluopont, , started to produce LiFSI in the second half of 2022 with a production capacity of 1,200 tons per year. To satisfy the rapidly soaring demand in the market, Hunan Fluopont intends to progressively increase its production capacity up to 12,000 tons per year by 2025.

In July 2021, the Toyota Tsusho group publicized its goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50 percent by 2030 compared to 2019 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. In November of the same year, the group drew up its Carbon Neutrality Road Map 2030. Toyota Tsusho positions businesses that contribute to the reduction of GHG as one of its important strategic trajectories, of which the in-vehicle battery business is a pillar to grow for next generation. Toyota Tsusho group now operates businesses throughout the lithium-ion battery supply chain, covering upstream resource exploitation for lithium hydroxide and downstream battery manufacturing and battery reuse/rebuild businesses. Toyota Tsusho will contribute to the transition to a decarbonized society by promoting efforts for carbon neutrality through its global sales network.

As per MRC, Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation (MCC) and Toyota Tsusho Corporation have begun a joint-consideration to manufacture and sale ethylene, propylene, and their derivatives using bioethanol as a raw material, with an aim to commence operation in 2025. There is a growing need for plastic reuse and recycling to achieve the realization of a sustainable recycling-oriented society. There are also strong expectations for realizing a sustainable life cycle by using plant-derived materials.{ima
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Teijin Frontier Co., Ltd., the Teijin Group's fibres and products converting company, has developed an 'eco-friendly' tire cord made from an adhesive that does not contain resorcinol formaldehyde (RF), said the company.

Designed for rubber reinforcement, the cord also delivers ‘low environmental impact’ through incorporating chemically recycled polyester fibre, said the company in a 12 Sept statement.

According to the company, this is the world's first commercialisation of a tire cord material that combines an RF-free adhesive and a chemically recycled polyester fiber.

Teijin Frontier said it would start test production of the product in 2023, targeting annual production of 200 kilotonnes per annum by 2030.

The company will also begin work on developing reinforcing-fibre applications for other rubber products, including belts and hoses.

According to Teijin Frontier, the new tire cord offers the same adhesion performance as that of conventional RF latex adhesives.

The fibres, which are made from polymers produced via chemical recycling, “maintain their strength, fatigue resistance, dimensional stability and heat resistance,” the company said.

The newly developed tire cord will be exhibited at the International Tire Exhibition and Conference in Akron, Ohio from 13-15 Sept.

We remind, Mitsui Chemicals, Inc. (Tokyo) and Teijin Ltd. (Toyko) jointly announced that they will become Japan’s first companies to develop and market biomass-derived bisphenol A (BPA) and polycarbonate (PC) resins, that will support efforts to achieve carbon neutrality by reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions throughout product lifecycles.

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