The Placard project is producing plasticizers
from cardanol, a by-product of the cashew nut industry
additives feature | Plasticizers Oxea ceased production of DEHP in 2010, and now
only supplies phthalate-free materials. The latest aspect of its capacity expansion programme is a new ester plant in Nanjing, China, due to come onstream shortly. “Phthalate plasticizers are not unsafe
materials,” says Oxea. “Some of the phthalates are simply classifi ed or being banned as a result of a bad reputation in the media and/or political pressures with a lack of scientifi c proof. However, with phthalates under fi re, we believe that the demand for phthalate- free products will continue to grow at a fast pace.” The company says that since DOTP is a suitable
replacement mainly for DEHP and di-isononyl phthalate (DINP), its growth has been strong over the years. In response to this growth, it is working to increase its European capacity for its Oxsoft GPO by 50,000 tonnes/ year by the end of 2015, giving it a global capacity of 150,000 tonnes/year. “We fi rmly believe the demand for DOTP will continue to experience a dramatic growth, from 460,000 tons in 2014 to 700,000 tons in the next couple of years,” says Jacco de Haas, global marketing
Medical options
For years the healthcare market has faced charges that PVC is unsuitable for IV tubing, moulded devices and other products, writes Pat Toensmeier. Nothing of substance in terms of data relevant to humans has come from these claims but they do in some cases affect additive chemistries. One area is the plasticizer DEHP. “It’s purely a public perception issue stimulated by NGOs insisting on
extrapolating rodent data that do not pertain to humans,” states Peter Galland, industry manager for medical applications for the Vinyl Division of compounder Teknor Apex. He adds: “Device makers may be phasing out DEHP but it’s taking place very, very slowly.” The alternatives are not drop-in replacements. In a presentation earlier
this year at MD&M West in California, Galland mentioned three options: DOTP and ATBC – both of which he calls frontrunners – along with TOTM. While none requires design changes in products, each is more expensive than DEHP and has characteristics that require processing adjustments. Galland says that about 5% of the company’s medical PVC sales
involve DEHP alternatives. These are sold under the brand name Apex along with the initials NP for “non-phthalate.”
www.teknorapex.com
The replacement of DEHP in
medical tubing applications is
taking place very slowly 54 COMPOUNDING WORLD | August 2014
manager for specialty esters at Oxea. “In addition to DOTP, we have also seen increasing
needs for other phthalate-free plasticizers, including DOA (dioctyl adipate) for fl ooring and food packaging, TOTM for medical devices and 3G8 (Triethylene glycol bis(2-ethylhexanoate)) for auto and construction. All these plasticizers are included in Oxea’s production portfolio.”
Haas says a growing number of medical device
producers are switching to TOTM. “This trend is further strengthened by Danish EPA – earlier this year, the Danish EPA identifi ed and assessed 10 potential alternatives to DOP in medical devices; TOTM, DOTP, and ATBC (acetyl tributyl citrate) are all listed among the safe alternatives to DOP. Therefore, we anticipate that this replacement movement in Europe will be at an even faster speed in the upcoming years.” Oxea’s latest addition to its range is a stabilized
TOTM that has been developed for applications where extreme low volatility is required. Launched last month, Oxsoft TOTM ST is stabilized with Lowinox CA22, a high performance specialty antioxidant from Addivant. It is claimed to deliver more effi cient stabilization, superior colour stability and better compatibility with the PVC compound. The addition of the stabilizer provides more robust extraction resistance, and additional thermal stability during the manufacturing process. Target applications for Oxsoft TOTM ST include wire and cables, plus coated fabrics manufacturing. Last year, Evonik launched a new generation of
phthalate-free PVC plasticizers under the Elatur brand. Its Elatur CH cyclohexane-1,2dicarboxylic acid, diison- onyl ester, produced at a new 40,000 tonnes/year plant in Marl, Germany, is said to be particularly suitable for sensitive applications such as every day-use articles that come into direct contact with the skin. The company is planning further additions to the
range, including bio-based plasticizers. It is currently in negotiations with cooperation partners. “The expansion
www.compoundingworld.com
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