NEWS Modern
Dispersions invests
Modern Dispersions, a US supplier of thermoplastic compounds and concen- trates, has announced production capacity expansions at two manu- facturing facilities. The company is adding a 133mm twin-screw extruder and ancillary equipment to increase capacity for engineered compounds and master- batches at its facility at Fitzgerald, Georgia, US. Due to startup by Q2 2020, the new line will meet strong demand growth in the automotive, electrical components and electron- ics packaging markets. The company will also bring on new capacity for black masterbatch at its site at Leominster in Massa- chusetts, US, next year. Modern Dispersions has also announced the installation of a 50mm Steer twin-screw pilot line at the same location with 1,500 kg/hour of capacity for development of new PA, PC and PET formula- tions and to support initial scale-up and pre-produc- tion needs. �
www.moderndispersions.com
European Commission will classify TiO2
carcinogenic
The European Commission has decided to move ahead with plans to classify titanium dioxide (TiO2
) as a category
2 carcinogen due to poten- tial inhalation hazards. The decision follows last
month’s Competent Authori- ties Meeting for REACH and CLP Regulations and goes against the advice of the ma- jority of its members, according to the VDMI (the German association repre- senting mineral pigment and masterbatch producers). It follows a change in the
legal process for CLP amendments to allow fast tracking into law as a “delegated act”. This means the classification will come into force if no objection is raised by either the Euro- pean Parliament or Council
“Delegated act” procedure could fast track adoption
of Ministers within two months.
VDMI and other oppo-
nents of the classification argue that TiO2
is not toxic
but is hazardous due to its particulate nature so should be addressed via occupa- tional exposure limits. They argue that applying the Category 2 carcinogen classification will mean that
products – such as plastics and paints – will be labelled as hazardous even where
there is no risk of TiO2 inhalation. Recycling and waste is one area of critical concern, says VDMI, as any product containing more than 1% of TiO2
a hazardous waste and could not be recycled. �
www.vdmi.de
Penn Color grows in Europe
Penn Color opened its expanded facility for production of PVC and engineering plastics colour and additive masterbatches at its site in Venray in the Netherlands this month. The $12m expansion includes a customer
innovation centre, which will be focused on a new rapid digital colour matching and prototyping system, as well as laboratory,
warehouse and office upgrades. The plant will produce masterbatches for
use in PVC profiles and siding, calendered PVC films and various engineering polymer applications, in addition to thermoplastic masterbatches for packaging, water-based inks and coatings for wallcoverings and floorings. �
www.penncolor.com
10,000tpa PHA project underway in Russia
Taif JSC Group, a Russian petrochemi- cals producer, has announced the start of the construction phase of its 10,000 tonnes/year polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) bioplastics project in the special economic-industrial zone of Alabuga in Tatarstan.
8 COMPOUNDING WORLD | October 2019 The company plans to award the
contract for construction of the plant by the end of the year and to start production in 2H 2021. In the longer term, capacity may be doubled, said the company. The project will use technology
licensed from Italy’s Bio-on to trans- form agricultural waste, including molasses and sugar cane and sugar beet syrups, into PHA polymer. The two companies signed an agreement in October 2018. �
www.taif.ru
www.compoundingworld.com
will become
PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK
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