additives | PVC
industry, so we are continuing to invest in new capacity and innovative additive solutions for our customers,” says Edward Hall, President and Chief Executive Officer, Baerlocher USA. Just over a year ago, Baerlocher also announced a major investment at its plant in Chang- zhou in China, where it produces calcium soaps (see Compounding World June 2016). The company says several trends are driving industry
Above: Clariant is supplying hydrotalcite stabiliser systems for applications including window profiles
More production of metal soaps Despite the many developments in organics, metal soaps are still on the up. At the beginning of this year, Baerlocher said it plans to expand production capacity for such products at its US operation in Cincinnati, US, by 50% to meet fast-growing demand from the PVC and polyolefin industries. The company says it will add a third reactor at the Ohio site for the production of calcium, zinc, sodium and other metal soaps. Baerlocher said the investment would also support
its development of innovations such as solid calcium- based PVC stabilisers. “These applications are expected to grow as the industry looks to reduce the use of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and heavy metal stabilisers,” the company says. The new reactor should be fully operational immi-
nently (the company had estimated June 2017). “Baerlocher is bullish on the North American plastics
demand for metal soaps, which are used not only as stabilisers but also as acid scavengers, lubricants, water repellents and mould release agents. “In the PVC sector, additive manufacturers are consolidating and scaling back, opening up new opportunities for companies like Baerlocher,” the company said in a statement. “Another trend in metal soaps – traditionally a
commodity industry – is the drive for differentiated products that address new requirements, such as calcium and zinc metal soaps to replace tin-based stabilisers. Tin usage has been targeted by the Euro- pean Union’s Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation for environmental and safety reasons, and tin supplies are subject to high volatility. Many PVC processors in North America are following this trend for environmental reasons, even though they are not required to do so by regulation.”
Acrylic alternatives Not all activity in PVC additives is confined to stabilisers. Discussing its new Cleartack W processing aids for rigid PVC, Total Cray Valley points out that one of the drawbacks of PVC is thermal sensitivity, which leads to
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