Page 162 - CW E-Magazine (3-9-2024)

News from Abroad

MONO-MATERIAL SOLUTION
Origin Materials makes recycling easier with tethered

PET cap breakthrough

US-based sustainable materials with no need to separate. That’s a real
specialist, Origin Materials, has revealed breakthrough for recycling circularity
engineering and design innovations in because it increases purity and keeps
manufacturing of tethered PET caps. valuable, high-performing PET plastic
in the loop.”
“The EU Single-Use Plastic Direc-
tive, which came into effect in July The tethered PET cap complements
2024, mandates that caps stay connected Origin’s previously announced PET
to bottles throughout the European closure, which is the “world’s lightest
Union,” said Mr. John Bissell, Origin CSD (carbonated soft drink) cap compa-
Co-Founder and Co-CEO. “Our PET tible with the PCO 1881 neck fi nish
cap innovations are perfectly suited cannot be recycled into new caps, only and the fi rst PET cap produced with
for that regulatory environment – and downcycled.” commercial-scale equipment”. Origin’s
frankly any environment. We expect PET caps can be made with any type of
many other regions to introduce their Mr. Bissell added, “If you are going PET plastic, whether virgin PET, recyc-
own tethered beverage cap require- to keep caps connected to bottles, the led PET (rPET), or bio-based PET.
ments as well, following the example logical thing to do is make the cap and
of the EU. With our leading PET cap the bottle from the same material: PET. “Our patent-pending tethered cap
technology and manufacturing systems, Otherwise recycling centres face the design is simple, clever, and user-
we are extremely well positioned to problem of separating tethered HDPE friendly. We use the threads of the
address a $65-bn caps and closures or polypropylene caps from PET bot- PET cap and bottle to lock the cap into
market that consumes billions upon tles. With our solution, caps and bot- place, angled away from the mouth, not
billions of caps per year which today tles can be recycled together easily toward it,” said Mr. Bissell.

EXPANSION
US-based Arclin to raise methylamine and DMF production

US-based Arclin is expanding its “The additional capacity will allow Mr. Jake Elston, Senior Vice President
North American production capacity for us to meet growing demand across a of Diversifi ed Materials.
methylamines and dimethylformamide variety of critical industries including
(DMF) with a major investment at its pharmaceuticals, nutrition, water treat- Asset installation is slated to begin
West Virginia manufacturing facility. ment, and electronics and further pro- in 2025, with all new production capa-
mote our company goal to diversify our cities expected to be operational by the
Arclin Amines is the sole producer product offerings to the market,” said end of 2026.
of methylamides in North America and
has experienced increased demand as Resonac to hike chloroprene rubber prices
industries shift toward domestic pro-
duction in the US. In response, plan- Japan’s Resonac Corporation (for- September 17, 2024, on shipping date
ning commenced in late 2023 to boost merly Showa Denko) has decided to basis. The company attributed the move
methylamine production capacity by raise prices of its chloroprene rubber to “substantial rise in raw material and
35% and DMF capacity by 100%. (trade name: Resonac Chloroprene), by electricity costs caused by surging raw
Additionally, the company is considering $550 per tonne or more for US-dollar- material and fuel prices”. Resonac said
the installation of formamide produc- based transactions and Euro 500 per it will continue making effort to reduce
tion capabilities to meet new demand tonne or more for Ero-based transactions. production costs of chloroprene through
in the US. The new prices will be effective from streamlining of production process.

162 Chemical Weekly September 3, 2024

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