NEWS | NPE REVIEW Shell marks out its place


Shell Polymers – which has just commenced construc- tion of a 1.6m tpa PE plant in Pennsylvania in the US – had a big presence at the show, underlining the transformational effect the shale industry has had on the North American petro- chemicals market. Shell has not produced polyolefins in North America since 2005, when it sold its stake in the Basell joint venture with BASF (the business was merged two years later into LyondellBa- sell). However, the attractive economics of shale have tempted the company back. Located in Beaver County 45km north-west of Pitts-


LLDPE grades. Construction began in the fourth quarter of last year with the first products set to reach the market in the early 2020s. Shell Polymers Business


Shell had a big presence at NPE in Orlando


burgh, the project includes an ethane cracker and three PE polymerisation units that will produce HDPE and


Integration Lead Michael Marr explained at the show that the decision to site the facility in Pennsylvania, close to the huge Marcellus and Utica shale fields, rather than on the Gulf Coast is intended to maximise the benefits of the new re- source. “Our thought was to put the plant closer to the shale fields and to the market,” he said. “70% of the North American PE market is within 700 miles.” � www.shell.us/poly-e


MDI extends conductive lines


US compounder Modern Dispersions added to its range of electrically conductive master- batches for antistatic and ATEX applications. “There seems to be a trend to master-


batch in this market,” said Vice President Jano A Kozma. “It can be more cost effective


if you are prepared to take on responsibility and it gives you more flexibility.” PP-235 is a PP masterbatch; CF-238 is a universal masterbatch suitable for PE, PP, PVC and PLA. � www.moderndispersions.com


Modular move from Leistritz


Leistritz showed a modular version of its ZSE 50 Maxx twin screw extruder configured with an extended barrel to support downstream compounding operations such as multiple venting or liquid injection. The machine was


displayed with two LSB 50 XX side stuffers. LSB XX units are equipped with high volume twin screws to push low density fibre reinforcements and fillers into the processing unit. Barrels are equipped with fluid circuits for heating and cooling and screws can be segmented and internally cooled if required. Other equipment on show included a ZSE 27 extruder configured with a gear pump, air rack cooler, belt puller and gauging for “on-the-fly” production of 3D print filaments. � www.leistritz.com


Clariant details US medical upgrades


Clariant said that the new compounding capacity installed earlier this year at its ISO 134585 medical compounding facility at Lewiston in Maine in the US has been successfully commissioned and is now ready for full scale production. Clariant Corporation Masterbatches


Head of Marketing Peter W Prusak said the 70mm extruder is part of a multi- million dollar investment at the facility that has also seen the installation of a new fluoropolymer line plus associated materials handling, weighing and water cooling. The programme has expanded the Lewiston facility by 40%, allowing it to


32 COMPOUNDING WORLD | June 2018


speed up production and to handle larger batches (pre-coloured Mevopur coloured compounds can now be produced in 6,000kg batches, twice what it could offer previously). In the additives sector, NPE marked the


introduction of Clariant’s Addworks ATR 146 heat stabiliser for TPOs to the US market. This low dosage, sulphur-free product is intended for automotive interior applications requiring good heat and light stability and low VOC emissions. � www.clariant.com


The new line in Clariant’s US medical compounding plant at Lewiston


www.compoundingworld.com


PHOTO: AMI


PHOTO: CLARIANT


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