INDUSTRY
News
Flame retardant growth drives debottlenecking at Lanxess Lanxess Deutschland GmbH has invested around 2 million in its Leverkusen unit for the manufacture of phosphorus oxychloride (POCl3). The company says that a combination of plant modernization and an
improvement in the production process has made it possible to expand capacity. The increase in volumes helps the company to strengthen its phosphorus network and also consolidates its position in the market. Phosphorus oxychloride is required for a wide variety of
applications including the production of organic phosphates for use as flame retardants in casings for mobile phones, televisions and computers. According to Lanxess, demand for POCl3 has increased owing to growth rates in these sectors,
making it necessary to debottleneck the existing unit in Leverkusen for oxidizing phosphorus trichloride. Contact: Lanxess AG Website: www.lanxess.com
Barrier resins for packaging set for US growth According to a new report, RP137U Plastics for Barrier Packaging, from Business Communications Co. Inc., the total U.S. market for the packaging barrier resins amounted to about 2.7 billion kg (5.9 billion pounds) in 2004 and is expected to grow at an overall AAGR (average annual growth rate) of 8.1% over the next five years to about 3.9 billion kg (8.6 billion pounds) by 2009. This market is classified into three main groups, differentiated by their barrier functions, namely barrier resins, permeable films and tie layer resins. There are three basic applications areas. The largest is food and beverage packaging, which accounts for more than
90% of the US market for the resins covered in this study. Other smaller but important markets include chemical/industrial products packaging and healthcare products packaging, such as pharmaceutical blister packaging. The report outlines trends in the barrier plastic packaging
market including the continuing trend towards more complicated and sophisticated multilayer barrier structures, using more but often thinner layers. In addition, there is the current development of the multifaceted effort to increase the barrier properties of PET to make it a suitable material for packaging beer. Several new
methods have been developed and now are being tested. This market could present a significant new opportunity for PET in barrier packaging. Contact: Business Communications Company, Inc E-mail:
[email protected]
Table1: US packaging barrier resin market volume by type 2004-2009 - million kg (million lbs.) Source: BCC, Inc. Resin type
2004
2009
AAGR% 2004-2009
2350 (5180)
3473 (7657)
8.1
Permeable films
232 (511)
344 (759)
8.2
Tie layer resins
70 (155)
92 (203)
5.5
2652 (5846)
3910 (8619)
8.1
Barrier resins
Total
US compounder installs new capacity US company O'Neil Color & Compounding has started up two new compounding lines, giving the speciality compounder additional capacity at both its New Jersey and Tennessee plants. A new high RPM twin-screw extrusion line was commissioned in New Jersey early in April and a new
high capacity single-screw line has been installed in Tennessee. The addition of these lines gives the company increased annual capacity of 9 million kg (20 million lbs). The company says that the new capacity will be used to support its growth in both colour concentrates and speciality TPE compounds.
Plastics Additives & Compounding May/June 2005
According to Mark Bruner, president of O'Neil, sales in 2004 grew by over 15% and so far in 2005 growth has been at an even higher rate. "We have added the new capacity to handle the growth in our business, but we also have added to our efficiencies with the latest technology. The goal
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today is not just to make more compounded resin, but to make it via the most efficient processing methods," comments Bruner. Contact: O'Neil Color and Compounding Corporation Website: www.oneilcolor.com