2 January, 2024 16:20:39 IST 
The Malaysian subsidiary of Japanese chemicals company, Idemitsu Kosan, has completed construction of a second SPS (syndiotactic polystyrene) production plant in Pasir Gudang, Johor, Malaysia, and launched commercial operation in November 2023.
SPS is a semicrystalline polymer synthesised from styrene monomer using a single-site catalyst, such as metallocene. It was first synthesised in 1985 by Idemitsu Kosan and commercialised in 1997. Because of its semicrystalline nature, SPS products exhibit performance attributes that are significantly different from those of amorphous styrenic materials. These properties include a high melting point, good chemical and moisture resistance, and a high degree of dimensional stability. SPS resin is widely used in automotive parts including those for electric vehicles, home appliances, and daily-use products such as tableware and microwave oven cooking containers, and the demand is expanding.
Idemitsu Kosan said with its second SPS production plant (9,000-tpa) in operation, the production scale of its proprietary material will be doubled. The new two-location system with the first SPS production plant at the Chiba Complex (Japan) has realised a more stable production and supply system, the company added.
The location of Idemitsu Kosan’s second SPS production plant, Pasir Gudang, is one of the company’s key manufacturing sites for petrochemical products. The plant will procure SM (styrene monomer), the raw material for SPS, from Idemitsu SM (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., a subsidiary of Idemitsu, which is located next to the SPS plant.
