Ultrapar to invest $470 M in 2010

F O C US inaugurated in September and the firm further announced plans to build an ethoxylation plant in the country, with start-up slated for early 2011 [ibid, Nov 2009]. Other companies are also catering to an expected increase in demand for nonionic surfactants in the Asia-Pacific region, with Japan’s Nikko Chemicals opening its Singapore nonionic surfactants plant in July and Aoki Oil Industries announcing plans for an EO/PObased nonionics plant. Investment in Brazil’s Oxiteno also continues to focus on ethylene oxide (EO) and ethoxylates production. Among other developments, Cognis has opened a new sulfation unit in Mexico, Croda is expanding esterification operations in Delaware, US, and Henkel has commissioned a new detergents plant in Turkey [ibid, Aug 2009]. Of course, the recession has sadly also claimed its victims in 2009. The linked closures of the Dow EO and Croda ethoxylates plants at Wilton announced in July are a notable example [ibid, Sep 2009]. Rumours did emerge in October of a possible rescue plan for Wilton, involving takeover of the Dow operation by a Texas-based company and an injection of significant funds (£50 M) by the UK government, but by December there was no tangible evidence of progress regarding the future of the EO plant. Croda has since reported the January closure of its production at Wilton; virtually all products have been transferred to other company operations worldwide. In addition, Wilton is no longer listed among Shell’s sites for the production of its Neodol ethoxylate lines in the UK so it appears that Shell has shut its Wilton ethoxylation unit too, although I can find no actual announcement to that effect. Elsewhere, Sara Lee has divested its personal care business to Unilever and BASF is selling its Texas surfactant plant to Clear Lake Chemicals. To end on a positive note, the recessionary conditions have certainly been no bar to the introduction of new surfactant products during 2009, with the nowfamiliar trends towards more sustainable and natural products well demonstrated among these launches. Colonial Chemicals has been positively prolific, introducing Cola 2

O N

S U R FAC TA N T S

Mate SI, an extra-mild sulfosuccinate anionic for personal care, the industrial ‘green’ Suga Det APG-10 range, Cola Teric CAPB for food processing and dairy facility cleaners, and most recently the mild ecofriendly Poly SugaCarb and Poly Suga Mulse products (p 2). Inolex has used derivatives from plants in the cabbage family to develop its new Emulsense cationic while Evonik Goldschmidt has also introduced a vegetable-based ester quat. Cytec launched APE-free Aerosol EF-810 for emulsion polymerization while Innospec brought out a new isethionate ester for personal care. It is impossible to mention all the new developments of the past 12 months but among the most recent new arrivals are the amphoterics Genaminox CHE from Clariant and Amphosol CDB Special from Stepan, as well as Huntsman’s Hydrapol RP nonionics range for domestic and industrial applications. This is necessarily only a limited summary of developments in 2009 but it seems to me that the performances shown by the surfactants and formulated products sectors during the year’s difficult conditions are very encouraging and will provide a solid foundation for the future. Caroline Edser

RAW MATERIALS Ethoxylates Ultrapar to invest $470 M in 2010 Brazilian firm Ultrapar plans to place R$820 M ($470 M) in investments in its local subsidiaries in 2010, not including acquisitions. It plans to direct R$185 M of these funds to its chemical subsidiary Oxiteno for use in the completion of a capacity expansion in Camacari, Bahia state [Focus on Surfactants, May 2009]. The project will boost the site’s capacity for ethylene oxide by 90,000 tonnes/y and ethoxylates by 70,000 tonnes/y. BNAmericas Petrochemicals News, 12 Jan 2010, (Business News Americas Ltda, website: http://www.bnamericas.com)

SURFACTANTS New products from Colonial Chemicals Colonial Chemicals Inc has expanded its line of eco-friendly personal care products with the launch of carboxylate surfactant Poly SugaCarb DM (INCI: sodium maleate decylglucoside crosspolymer). The new green material, which provides mild cleansing and superior foaming quality, serves as a gentle primary surfactant in sulfatefree and other wash-off applications. Poly SugaCarb causes less eye irritation compared with conventional surfactants such as sodium lauryl sulfate, scoring an 8.00 on the HETCAM chart for eye irritation. It also scores an 8.39 in the Green Star Rating for being 83% natural. Colonial Chemical is also offering two mild, naturally derived, nonethoxylated emulsifiers formulated for eco-friendly personal care applications. Poly Suga Mulse D [proposed INCI: decyl-glucoside sorbitan oleate crosspolymer] and Poly Suga Mulse L [proposed INCI: lauryl-glucoside sorbitan oleate crosspolymer] were created for making w/o and o/w emulsions. Because they are nonethoxylated, these emulsifiers are especially useful in 1,4-dioxane-free formulations, the company says. The two emulsifiers are said to be ideal for use in spray-on sunscreen lotions since they generate emulsions with low viscosity. They are also ideal for use in natural-based creams and lotions. Naturally derived from sugar, corn and olive oil, these emulsifiers are more than 80% natural with a Green Star Rating of 8.09. HPC, Household and Personal Care Today, Dec 2009, (4), 51 & SPC, Soap, Perfumery and Cosmetics, Dec 2009, 82 (12), 56; & SPC, Soap, Perfumery and Cosmetics, Jan 2010, 83 (1), 49

Natural hair conditioning with Emulsense The Emulsense technology from Inolex is claimed to be the first cationic agent that is totally non-petrochemical, 100% renewable and compliant with the latest industry standards from NPA, NaTrue and COSMOS. Emulsense (INCI: brassicyl isoleucinate esylate (and) brassica alcohol) is based on non-GMO fermentation chemistry and the oil extracted from brassica plants. MARCH 2010