PIGMENTS | BLACK AND WHITE


Right: Orion is heading a €12.8m project that aims to improve the quality and cut cost of circular carbon blacks produced from scrap tyres


needs and develop grades to meet their specific performance requirements.” In September, Orion announced it is investing €12.8m (including €6.4m of German government and EU funding) to further develop and demon- strate a climate-neutral process for production of carbon black from alternative carbon sources. A project research facility is to be built at the com- pany’s innovation center in Cologne, Germany. “The Clean Carbon Black Research and Devel- opment Project’s aim will be to develop ways to reduce the carbon footprint and improve the yield and throughput, potentially lowering the cost of the material. Technological breakthroughs in this increasingly important field could have significant ramifications for energy integration and the molecular recycling of tyres,” says Orion CEO Corning Painter.


Sustainable whites Turning from black pigments to white, the latest titanium dioxide (TiO2


) addition to the Chemours


Ti-Pure Sustainability (TS) series is Ti-Pure TS-1510, described as a highly efficient rutile TiO2


pigment


Below: Ti-Pure TS-1510 is the latest addition to Chemours’ sustainable TiO2 product line, promising up to 30% increase in compounding productivity


for plastics applications. The new grade is said to be designed with “enhanced [higher] material bulk density” to improve production rates when using it in plastics compounding applications. For master- batch producers, the company says the pigment’s improved flow aids energy efficiency and allows more complete unloading with faster feed rates. Chemours reports an up to 30% increase in compounding line productivity when using the TS-1510 grade. The higher bulk density reduces the space


required for storage, which in turn can save on warehousing costs. Chemours also says it has adopted new bulk packaging designed to be recycled or reused. “These flexible intermediate bulk container (FIBC) packages are comprised of


IMAGE: CHEMOURS


Type B woven polypropylene (PP) fabric, which does not contain additives that would contaminate or disrupt the PP recycling process. This provides an advantage over another common fabric, Type D, which is not recyclable due to the addition of conductive fibres,” says Cherie Stancik, Product Development Manager, Plastics at the company. A pilot reuse program is already available to selected customers and may be scaled to others in the future, says Stancik. It involves collecting used FIBCs from customers, then cleaning, inspecting for safety and quality, and, if needed, repairing bags before releasing them for reuse into the same application. Bags that are deemed unsuitable for reuse are shredded for recycling. “At Chemours, we’re continuing to evolve the sustainability of our offerings, including their packages, to meet customers’ needs without raising costs. Addressing circularity by increasing the recyclability of our products is a critical part of our mission to deliver sustainable solutions,” Stancik says. “This is more important than ever as the pressure on the plastics industry to reduce its environmental impact continues in the form of new government regulations, international guidelines, and consumer needs.” TiO2


and specialty chemical groupVenator announced last month it has completed and exited the Chapter 11 recapitalisation process it com- menced in May of this year after facing what it described as “unprecedented macroeconomic headwinds, including significantly lower product demand and higher raw material and energy costs.” The company says the recapitalisation and


restructuring has resulted in an improved balance sheet and has reduced its debt from more than $1bn to around $200m. “We are now better positioned to address what continues to be a challenging market. Venator has great potential for


28 COMPOUNDING WORLD | November 2023 www.compoundingworld.com


IMAGE: ORION ENGINEERED CARBON


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