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Biomaterials – the future for coatings?
FOCUS ON P O W D E R C O AT I N G S A MONTHLY REPORT FROM SID HARRIS FEBRUARY 2011
AN INTERNATIONAL NEWSLETTER MONITORING TECHNICAL AND COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENTS IN POWDER COATINGS ISSN 1364–5439
BIOMATERIAL POWDER COATINGS?
In this issue
TECHNICAL
1-2
Biomaterials – the future for coatings?
INDUSTRY NEWS
2-3
Powder coatings. AkzoNobel inaugurates new production facility New line of Jotun ‘Lady Effects’ OK sells stake in AkzoNobel Paints Ferro buys Egyptian production plant
NEW PRODUCTS
3-4
DSM NeoResins+ UV-curable resin iGloss: fewer scratches, higher gloss
MARKETS
4-7
Reportlinker adds automotive coatings, adhesives & sealants
CONGRESS
7-8
Call for papers at the 12th International Coatings Congress The European Coatings Congress
EVENTS
8
The main item in this month’s edition is the positive European development of biomaterials for use in all types of coatings, pigments and inks. There is no hope for any future decrease in the costs of coatings raw materials that are based on petrochemical derivatives, but according to DSM and Roquette, biobased components of coating binder systems are a viable alternative, which can offer both quality and a more acceptable cost. There are products at the testing stage, including a powder coating with good appearance and impact resistance. Since the source of these biomaterials is currently based on food products, their connection to the escalation of food prices could become the major obstacle to these developments. However, there is already work in hand to examine the possibility of using cellulosic materials as a feedstock by extracting these products from stems, leaves and other waste biomass materials. This is a heartening thought for all beleaguered coatings manufacturers! Industry news, inevitably, contains details of price increases and these have to be largely absorbed by the coatings producer. This has not yet impacted on sales, which are growing cautiously, but eventually a breaking point will be reached,
and the smaller producers will face the greatest threat to their survival. If the DSM/Roquette liaison discussed on p1-2 is successful then help is at hand. Sid Harris
TECHNICAL Biomaterials – the future for coatings? The current trend in Europe is the development of biomaterials alternatives that reduce the dependence on petrochemical sources and also reduce the carbon footprints of products based on these materials. The role of biomaterials in coatings and other outlets dominated by fossil based chemicals is likely to show rapid growth during the coming decade. Roquette, a leading French producer of starches and starch derivatives is working on biomass products as an alternative feedstock to crude oil, with biomaterials, which are competitive in terms of cost and technology. To achieve this aim, Roquette has formed a technical alliance with DSM of the Netherlands, to create a joint venture for developing cornderived succinic acid, a polyester building block for binders used in
POWDER COATINGS POWDER COATINGS POWDER COATINGS POWDER COATINGS
FOCUS the coatings industry and other sectors. Roquette is also one of the world’s largest producers of bio-based polyols and is placing reliance on the production of renewable materials by the large French agricultural industry to double their share of industrial raw materials to 15% by 2017. DSM has now moved out of petrochemicals production to become a leading pioneer of white biotechnology and it believes that in the long term, these plant based materials will become the primary feedstock source for manufactured products. There are challenges, and one of the biggest is the availability of agricultural crops like corn at a competitive price, but the real driving force to biomaterials development is the ever-rising price of crude oil products. Reverdia, the DSM-Roquette joint venture, already has a demonstration plant with a biosuccinic acid capacity of a few hundred tonnes. DSM has developed an enzyme and yeast technology that enables Reverdia to make succinic acid from cornderived glucose far more cheaply than the conventional process used at DSM’s Graz plant. Reverdia’s process, which uses yeast, is even less expensive than the bacteria-based production processes of some competitors. DSM estimates that coatings, pigments and inks account for 11,000 tonnes of the global 35,000 tonnes/y demand for succinic acid. If low cost biosuccinic acid were to become widely available, its demand for coatings and coatings resins production could hit 140,000 tonnes in 2020, out of overall biosuccinic acid consumption of around 2 M tonnes. Biosuccinic is the first in a line of biomaterials planned by DSM because biosuccinic acid has enormous potential use in a number of new compounds where it was previously not viable due to cost. Details of DSM and Roquettes’ planned commercial plant for the 2
ON
POWDER
biosuccinic process will be decided within the next few months. Biosuccinic acid is already being supplied in combination with Roquette’s bio-based polyols to provide composites for coatings and other applications. Corn glucose can be hydrogenated to sorbitol, and then converted into isosorbide and other diols. Roquette is raising its Lestrem capacity for these to 1000 tonnes in 2011. In combination with biosuccinic acid, isosorbide can be made into polyesters, which with other renewable monomers can be extended into branched copolyesters with crosslinking capabilities. Roquette has been market-testing isosorbide and succinic based co- and terpolymers for powder coating applications and reports that the powder coatings can be applied in very thin transparent films with high impact resistance. DSM is developing enzyme and yeast technologies for producing both biochemicals and biofuels from cellulose and lignocellulose from residual biomass rather than from crop grain and seeds, so that biomaterials will no longer be directly influenced by food prices. These second generation biomaterials will need the support of government grants and financial incentives. Coatings World Nov 2010, 15 (11), 14-15
INDUSTRY NEWS Powder coatings. AkzoNobel inaugurates new production facility Paint and coatings manufacturer AkzoNobel aims to double its turnover in China during the next 5 years and invest in the expansion of its Chinese production facilities. The company has inaugurated a new
C O AT I N G S extendable powder coatings production facility with a capacity of 4000 tonnes/y in the industrial centre Wuhan in China. AkzoNobel now operates 6 powder coatings production facilities in China. The Chinese market plays an important role for business strategy of the group due to the predicted growth rates for powder coatings. In 2009 AkzoNobel generated a turnover of $1.5 bn and this figure is expected to rise to €3 bn by 2015. Farbe und Lack, Dec 2010, 116 (12), 8 (in German)
New line of Jotun ‘Lady Effects’ Jotun Paints has expanded its ‘Lady’ brand with the launch of the new ‘Lady Effects’ line of premium paints in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Thanks to their improved finish and new interior effects, the new products offer clients more colours to suit their lifestyles and personalities. The launch of the new paint range is part of Jotun Paints’ strategy to keep its leading position in the estimated $2 bn Middle East Paint industry. The ‘Lady Effects’ range includes ‘Lady Effects Pearl,’ ‘Lady Effects Metallic’ and ‘Lady Effects Glaze.’ PPCJ, Polymers, Paint, Colour Journal, Nov 2010, 200 (4554), 8
OK sells stake in AkzoNobel Paints OK has entered into an agreement to sell its minority stake in AkzoNobel Paints (Thailand) Ltd to a company within the AkzoNobel concern. The transaction is expected to take place before the end of Dec 2010. The portfolio investment in Akzo Nobel Paints was historically related to EAC Industrial Ingredients in Thailand but this business unit was sold in Jul 2010 and there was no longer any strategic rationale in investing further in AkzoNobel Paints. NP Investor, 7 Dec 2010, (Website: http://www.npinvestor.dk/) (in Danish)
FEBRUARY 2011
AN INTERNATIONAL NEWSLETTER MONITORING TECHNICAL AND COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENTS IN POWDER COATINGS ISSN 1364–5439
BIOMATERIAL POWDER COATINGS?
In this issue
TECHNICAL
1-2
Biomaterials – the future for coatings?
INDUSTRY NEWS
2-3
Powder coatings. AkzoNobel inaugurates new production facility New line of Jotun ‘Lady Effects’ OK sells stake in AkzoNobel Paints Ferro buys Egyptian production plant
NEW PRODUCTS
3-4
DSM NeoResins+ UV-curable resin iGloss: fewer scratches, higher gloss
MARKETS
4-7
Reportlinker adds automotive coatings, adhesives & sealants
CONGRESS
7-8
Call for papers at the 12th International Coatings Congress The European Coatings Congress
EVENTS
8
The main item in this month’s edition is the positive European development of biomaterials for use in all types of coatings, pigments and inks. There is no hope for any future decrease in the costs of coatings raw materials that are based on petrochemical derivatives, but according to DSM and Roquette, biobased components of coating binder systems are a viable alternative, which can offer both quality and a more acceptable cost. There are products at the testing stage, including a powder coating with good appearance and impact resistance. Since the source of these biomaterials is currently based on food products, their connection to the escalation of food prices could become the major obstacle to these developments. However, there is already work in hand to examine the possibility of using cellulosic materials as a feedstock by extracting these products from stems, leaves and other waste biomass materials. This is a heartening thought for all beleaguered coatings manufacturers! Industry news, inevitably, contains details of price increases and these have to be largely absorbed by the coatings producer. This has not yet impacted on sales, which are growing cautiously, but eventually a breaking point will be reached,
and the smaller producers will face the greatest threat to their survival. If the DSM/Roquette liaison discussed on p1-2 is successful then help is at hand. Sid Harris
TECHNICAL Biomaterials – the future for coatings? The current trend in Europe is the development of biomaterials alternatives that reduce the dependence on petrochemical sources and also reduce the carbon footprints of products based on these materials. The role of biomaterials in coatings and other outlets dominated by fossil based chemicals is likely to show rapid growth during the coming decade. Roquette, a leading French producer of starches and starch derivatives is working on biomass products as an alternative feedstock to crude oil, with biomaterials, which are competitive in terms of cost and technology. To achieve this aim, Roquette has formed a technical alliance with DSM of the Netherlands, to create a joint venture for developing cornderived succinic acid, a polyester building block for binders used in
POWDER COATINGS POWDER COATINGS POWDER COATINGS POWDER COATINGS
FOCUS the coatings industry and other sectors. Roquette is also one of the world’s largest producers of bio-based polyols and is placing reliance on the production of renewable materials by the large French agricultural industry to double their share of industrial raw materials to 15% by 2017. DSM has now moved out of petrochemicals production to become a leading pioneer of white biotechnology and it believes that in the long term, these plant based materials will become the primary feedstock source for manufactured products. There are challenges, and one of the biggest is the availability of agricultural crops like corn at a competitive price, but the real driving force to biomaterials development is the ever-rising price of crude oil products. Reverdia, the DSM-Roquette joint venture, already has a demonstration plant with a biosuccinic acid capacity of a few hundred tonnes. DSM has developed an enzyme and yeast technology that enables Reverdia to make succinic acid from cornderived glucose far more cheaply than the conventional process used at DSM’s Graz plant. Reverdia’s process, which uses yeast, is even less expensive than the bacteria-based production processes of some competitors. DSM estimates that coatings, pigments and inks account for 11,000 tonnes of the global 35,000 tonnes/y demand for succinic acid. If low cost biosuccinic acid were to become widely available, its demand for coatings and coatings resins production could hit 140,000 tonnes in 2020, out of overall biosuccinic acid consumption of around 2 M tonnes. Biosuccinic is the first in a line of biomaterials planned by DSM because biosuccinic acid has enormous potential use in a number of new compounds where it was previously not viable due to cost. Details of DSM and Roquettes’ planned commercial plant for the 2
ON
POWDER
biosuccinic process will be decided within the next few months. Biosuccinic acid is already being supplied in combination with Roquette’s bio-based polyols to provide composites for coatings and other applications. Corn glucose can be hydrogenated to sorbitol, and then converted into isosorbide and other diols. Roquette is raising its Lestrem capacity for these to 1000 tonnes in 2011. In combination with biosuccinic acid, isosorbide can be made into polyesters, which with other renewable monomers can be extended into branched copolyesters with crosslinking capabilities. Roquette has been market-testing isosorbide and succinic based co- and terpolymers for powder coating applications and reports that the powder coatings can be applied in very thin transparent films with high impact resistance. DSM is developing enzyme and yeast technologies for producing both biochemicals and biofuels from cellulose and lignocellulose from residual biomass rather than from crop grain and seeds, so that biomaterials will no longer be directly influenced by food prices. These second generation biomaterials will need the support of government grants and financial incentives. Coatings World Nov 2010, 15 (11), 14-15
INDUSTRY NEWS Powder coatings. AkzoNobel inaugurates new production facility Paint and coatings manufacturer AkzoNobel aims to double its turnover in China during the next 5 years and invest in the expansion of its Chinese production facilities. The company has inaugurated a new
C O AT I N G S extendable powder coatings production facility with a capacity of 4000 tonnes/y in the industrial centre Wuhan in China. AkzoNobel now operates 6 powder coatings production facilities in China. The Chinese market plays an important role for business strategy of the group due to the predicted growth rates for powder coatings. In 2009 AkzoNobel generated a turnover of $1.5 bn and this figure is expected to rise to €3 bn by 2015. Farbe und Lack, Dec 2010, 116 (12), 8 (in German)
New line of Jotun ‘Lady Effects’ Jotun Paints has expanded its ‘Lady’ brand with the launch of the new ‘Lady Effects’ line of premium paints in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Thanks to their improved finish and new interior effects, the new products offer clients more colours to suit their lifestyles and personalities. The launch of the new paint range is part of Jotun Paints’ strategy to keep its leading position in the estimated $2 bn Middle East Paint industry. The ‘Lady Effects’ range includes ‘Lady Effects Pearl,’ ‘Lady Effects Metallic’ and ‘Lady Effects Glaze.’ PPCJ, Polymers, Paint, Colour Journal, Nov 2010, 200 (4554), 8
OK sells stake in AkzoNobel Paints OK has entered into an agreement to sell its minority stake in AkzoNobel Paints (Thailand) Ltd to a company within the AkzoNobel concern. The transaction is expected to take place before the end of Dec 2010. The portfolio investment in Akzo Nobel Paints was historically related to EAC Industrial Ingredients in Thailand but this business unit was sold in Jul 2010 and there was no longer any strategic rationale in investing further in AkzoNobel Paints. NP Investor, 7 Dec 2010, (Website: http://www.npinvestor.dk/) (in Danish)
FEBRUARY 2011