NEWS


Experts set to debate future of technical compounding


Speakers have been announced for the Future of the Technical Compound- ing Industry debate, which takes place at the Compounding World Expo at Messe Essen. It is part of the free-to- attend conference sessions that run across two theatres at the expo in Germany on 3-4 June 2020. The debate will be chaired by Chris


Smith, Editor-in-Chief of Compounding World magazine, which is published by expo organiser AMI. It will feature business and technology leaders from major compounding operations across Europe. Expert participants include: Bernd


Sparenberg, Vice President for Techni- cal Compounds at Albis Plastic; Adam Galambos, European Director of Technology at Washington Penn Plastic; Murat Cansever, Technical Director at Eurotec; and Flavio Olivo,


The technical compounding expert line-up includes (from left to right) Eurotec Technical Director Murat Cansever, Washington Penn Plastic European Director of Technology Adam Galambos, Sirmax Global Director of Sales Flavio Olivo, and Albis Plastic Vice President for Technical Compounds Bernd Sparenberg


Global Sales Director at Sirmax. The debate is one of four that will be held over the two days of the expo – the others will focus on the future for masterbatch, cable compounds and regulatory issues. The latter will be hosted by the EuMBC, the European Masterbatchers and Compounders association. The full programme can be downloaded here.


Register for your free ticket here. It


will provide free admission to the Compounding World Expo, plus three exhibitions focused on plastics recycling, extrusion and testing that take place in the adjacent hall at Messe Essen. In total, there will be more than 300 exhibitors and five free conference theatres with 100-plus speakers. � eu.compoundingworldexpo.com


Leistritz working on foamed rPET


German compounding extruder maker Leistritz announced at the Interplas- tica show in Moscow in January that, together with recycling specialist NGR, film producer Kuhne and Russian company ForPET, it has developed and tested technology to recycle rPET into foamed sheet for carton production. The idea of using rPET


for production of beverage cartons came from Russian firm ForPET. “Our goal was to produce a material that allows recycling without limits,” said co-owner Sergey Nikitenko. ForPET has patented the concept, which


10 COMPOUNDING WORLD | February 2020


produces a 100% recyclable alternative to the composite materials currently used in beverage cartons. This gets around the difficulties of separating layers of differ- ent materials at end-of-life. In the newly developed


process, rPET and any additives required are prepared in a Leistritz twin-screw extruder in combination with an NGR


liquid state polycondensa- tion reactor to create a pellet or melt for down- stream foaming. This is loaded with a physical blowing agent on another twin-screw extruder and then sent to a Kuhne film extruder downstream. According to Nikitenko,


ForPET is “currently working with investors to establish a commercial development centre in Russia”. Final development is expected to be


completed by the end of 2020. � www.leistritz.com


Left: ForPET’s foam rPET films can replace composite carton board


LimnoPlast takes the water


LimnoPlast – a €4.1m EU Horizon 2020 project intended to investigate the impact of plastic on Europe’s freshwater resources — was launched at the University of Bay- reuth at the end of last year. The project will research


where small particles and fibres in the environment come from and what their effects are on freshwater systems. It is intended to combine natural and social sciences approaches together with environmen- tal engineering. � www.limnoplast-itn.eu


www.compoundingworld.com


IMAGE: LEISTRITZ


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