Plastics supply news: Ticona acquires DuPont’s LCP and PCT businesses

DuPont (Wilmington, DE) has marketed its LCP under the Zenite brand name. LCP finds use in a variety of applications but is of special interest in the electronics/eletricaldevice markets due the the material's high temperature stability. LCPs are used in switches, connectors, memory module sockets, in-play consoles, laptops, televisions and mobile phones and other electrical and electronics devices. Other suppliers of LCP include Sumitomo, Toray, Solvay Advanced Polymers and Polyplastics, which makes and markets Ticona's Vectra-brand LCP in Asia. Polyplastics recently increased its LCP capacity due to what it reports is renewed strong demand from Asian E/E device manufacturers.

In reply to questions from MPW, Ticona officials said no DuPont personnel or plant/equipment were part of the acquisition; the purchase involves recipes and intellectual property. The deal actually closed May 5, they said. Ticona will not reveal its current LCP capacity. 

Polycyclohexylene-dimethylene terephthalate (PCT), marketed by DuPont as Thermx,  is essentially a hyped-up polyester or PBT, offering higher heat stability and better hydrolysis resistance than those materials. Typical parts include circuit board connectors, automotive connectors, lamp sockets and relays.

In a statement, David Weidman, chairman and CEO at Celanese, Ticona's parent company, said, "These two products broaden the company's Ticona Engineering Polymers offerings, enabling Celanese to respond to a globalizing customer base, especially in the high growth electrical and electronics application segments." —Matt Defosse