NEWS Azoty invests in plasticisers


Polish chemicals group Grupa Azoty will complete a 30% capacity expansion for its non-phthalate Oxoviflex plasticiser by the end of the year and has started work on a 10,000 tonnes/y unit for production of new specialty polyester and polysuccinate plasticisers. The moves are the company’s response to the rapidly changing global regulatory position for plasticisers, which it said is particularly noticeable in Europe and the US but increasingly also in coun- tries such as China. The investments follow the firms’ announcement in February this year that its Oxo Segment had ended production of DEHP, DOP (including medical grades)


Brenntag acquires Alphamin


Brenntag has acquired Belgian speciality chemi- cals distributor Alphamin, including its US subsidiary, from KeBeK Private Equity. Terms were not disclosed. Alphamin is focused on speciality polymers and waxes, with plastics among the many industries it supplies. It had sales of €44.6 million in the year to 30 June 2018. Karsten Beckmann, CEO


of Brenntag Europe, Middle East and Africa, called Alphamin “an attractive bolt-on”. � www.brenntag.com


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and DPHP and would cease all supply once it had cleared its inventories. Grupa Azoty launched


production of its Oxoviflex DEHT/DOTP plasticisers in 2015 and claims to be the largest player in the Euro- pean market. The products are suitable for substitution of many currently used plasticisers and meet the


requirements of EU toy and food contact regulations, according to the company. The new investment in


non-ortho-phthalate DEHT/ DOTP plasticiser production will lift the company’s annual capacity by 15,000 tonnes to 65,000 tonnes and justifies its decision to enter the sector, according to OXO Segment Director


Aleksander Grymel. “Grow- ing demand for Oxoviflex proves that we have taken the right decision,” he said. The separate decision to build a new plant for production of polyester and biocompatible polysucci- nate plasticisers is part of the company’s previously initiated Special Esters Project and underlines the role that specialty plasticis- ers are expected to play in the Grupa Azoty business in the future. The company already has a small-scale pilot specialty esters plant in operation, allowing it to supply sample quantities. The new 10,000 tonne/yr capacity unit will support commercial introduction. � www.grupaazoty.com


Versarien in graphene deal


Advanced materials engi- neering group Versarien has signed an agreement with UK-based independent technical compounder Luxus to develop a supply chain for graphene-enhanced plastics suitable for volume sale to injection moulding companies. Versarien already has an


agreement with Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) to incorporate its Nanene graphene nano-platelets into polymers to enhance their mechanical strength and other properties. The deal with Luxus aims to ensure the developed materials are suitable for commercial application. “We are seeing strong


COMPOUNDING WORLD | September 2018


Aims to ensure graphene compounds are commercially viable


interest from a variety of sectors in utilising the materials we are developing with WMG,” said Neill Ricketts, CEO of Versarien. “Being able to produce these graphene-enhanced plastics in commercial volumes will enable them to be more rapidly adopted for use in a wide variety of applications.”


Applications are envis- aged in a number of different markets served by Versarien and its subsidiar- ies – 2D-Tech, ACC Cyroma, Cambridge Graphene and Total Carbide. These include automotive, construction, utilities and retail industry sectors. � www.versarien.com


www.compoundingworld.com


PHOTO: VERSARIEN


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