NEWS
Neste backs chemical recycling
Finnish petrochemicals company Neste said it is “exploring ways to intro- duce liquefied waste plastic as a future raw material for fossil refining”. An ongoing develop-
ment project is expected to proceed to industrial scale trial during 2019. The company said it aims to use 1m tonnes/year of waste plastic in this way by 2030 (equivalent to near 4% of the current amount of plastic waste generated in Europe). Matti Lehmus, EVP of
Neste’s Oil Products business, described the move as in line with the EU’s Strategy for Plastics in a Circular Economy. He said it will support reduction in plastic waste and increase the level of chemical recycling. He said the latter is needed alongside mechanical recycling to meet EU targets of recy- cling 50% and 55% of plastic packaging by 2025 and 2030 respectively. �
http://neste.com
Chemical firms waiting for post-Brexit clarity
As hopes for a negotiated Brexit deal appear to be waning, and the prospect of a disorderly UK-exit on March 29 next year looms, the chemical industry looks to be taking a wait-and-see approach and hoping that much-needed regulatory clarity will emerge soon. Data from the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) shows that 5,343 of the 20,608 substances regis- tered under the EU’s REACH regulation are to UK regis- trants. In the absence of an agreement being reached between UK and EU negotia- tors, these will become “non-existent” on the UK’s departure next year, mean- ing the substances cannot be on the market in the EU. In most cases, transfer-
ring a registration from a UK to EU entity will be a fast process, according to an ECHA spokesperson, involving little more than an online application and payment of a fee. However, in some cases new applica- tions will be required (where
Two years after the UK’s 2016 referendum, Europe’s chemical industry still awaits regulatory clarity
an EU-entity is to register a substance as an importer, for example) and this could take longer.
“So far we have not observed a large number of legal entity changes or changes in ORs [Only Representatives] from UK registrations,” ECHA told Compounding World, suggesting UK registrants are waiting for clarity on the future legal position. That’s a view shared by
Peter Newport, CEO of the UK’s Chemical Business Association. “Companies are waiting to see what happens,” he said. “Why pay a fee to move an OR from London to Berlin if you may not need to.” Newport agrees with
ECHA that for larger companies a transfer will not present significant chal- lenges. However, he said smaller companies may find it more difficult and some UK registrants have already set up ORs in the EU-27 in anticipation of a transfer. The CBA is itself consider- ing relocating the OR work carried out by its regulatory facilitation division, ReFac, to an EU-27 office. European chemicals industry association Cefic said it is “in the process of developing our recommen- dations” for EU-27 members but could not yet provide concrete details. �
www.echa.europa.eu �
www.chemical.org.uk
Colour Tone reformulates for PVCu
UK-based masterbatch maker Colour Tone has secured a new patent covering its Vynacol PVCu polymer- specific masterbatch colouring system, including formulation developments supporting the move to the smaller “prill” format. Prill-format particles need less
energy to disperse and allow more accurate dosing at low addition levels, according to Colour Tone Director
12 COMPOUNDING WORLD | August 2018
Tony Gaukroger. However, the original Vynacol formulations launched back in 2000 would not process or disperse well in the smaller format. “This improved masterbatch is available in both formats for ease of mixing and homogenisation. It also offers significantly improved melt rheology control for consistent processing of more highly loaded formulations,” he said. Maximum
loadings have increased from 50% to up to 65%. Colour Tone, now part of UK technical compounder Luxus, has achieved considerable success with its polymer-specific PVC masterbatch, according to Gaukroger, who says that, unlike universal products based on plasticiser or wax carriers, it does not compromise the PVC recipe. �
www.colourtone-masterbatch.co.uk
www.compoundingworld.com
PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK
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