Compounding

Houston—The same longevity that makes plastics desirous as a material draws the ire of environmentalists who decry the burgeoning amounts of the synthetic materials piling up in landfills. At the recent Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) International Polyolefins Conference in Houston, TX (Feb.

A. Schulman Inc. (Akron, OH) has expanded its presence in the North American masterbatch market, purchasing color concentrate manufacturer McCann Color Inc. (North Canton, OH) for less than $10 million in cash. In addition to specially formulated color concentrates, McCann Color supplies UV absorbers, dry color, flame retardant compounds, and toll compounding and blending.

As Chinaplas opens in Shanghai this April, China will more than likely be celebrating its impending emergence as the world’s second-largest economy after the United States, expecting to have edged slightly ahead of Japan when the final 2009 GDP numbers come in.

Plastics and chemicals supplier Arkema has developed news channels for it to get its Graphistrength-brand multiwall carbon nanotubes into the hands of processors, including a masterbatch, CNTs specifically for elastomers, and solid concentrates for liquid epoxy and aqueous solutions.

Independently compounded thermoplastics are projected to show some decent growth over the next few years as custom-tailored formulations become popular as a competitive edge among OEMs.

A British consortium has conducted successful trials converting waste polypropylene (PP) carpets into pellets that can be re-used in new applications, including injection molded products. Recycling specialist Axion Consulting, in conjunction with Carpet Recycling UK and using funding from Envirolink NW, undertook demonstration trials and laboratory tests at its Salford plant that it believes could boost the country's carpet recycling industry while creating new markets for PP recyclate.

PolyOne Corp. (Avon Lake, OH) has acquired custom thermoplastics compounder New England Urethane (NEU; North Haven, CT), for $12 million, approximately 4.9 times the company’s estimated 2009 EBITDA. In addition to specialty cable and electronics/telecom compounds, NEU has a substantial amount of business in the medical device market, including antimicrobial additives, radiopacifiers, medical grades of various plastics, and FDA USP Class VI Materials and ISO 9001:2000 certifications.

Old plants never die, not when their costs have long been written off: that seems to be the rule among the polyethylene and polypropylene supply base. That and many other points were covered at the PEPP 2009 global congress on polyolefins, organized by Maack Business Services (MBS) in Zurich in October. 

Breen Color Concentrates needs to make top quality pellets so its customers products can be top quality. Customers also often need a fast color match and shipment. Breen opted for a Quick Clean Color Change compounding line from Technical Process and Engineering Inc. (TPEI; Lehighton, PA), and not just for the name.

Replacing aluminum, about 65% of the cabin on the new Lexus LFA sports cars will be made from carbon fiber-reinforced plastic supplied by Toho Tenax. Weight savings compared to the metal standard is about 100kg. Some other components also will be made of the high-end composites.