News
Evonik Expands Plasticizer Alcohol Capacity in Marl (2-PH)
Evonik Industries AG is expanding its oxo alcohol production capacity at the Marl site by 60,000 metric tons per year. The alcohol 2-propyl heptanol (2-PH), which is used as a starting material in the manufacture of PVC, for example, in cables and films, will also be produced there for the first time. The 2-PH facility is scheduled to come on stream in the latter half of 2009.
Given the globally growing demand for plasticizers, the new 2-PH plant will complement the existing isononanol (INA) business. At the Marl site, Evonik already has an annual INA capacity of 340,000 metric tons, which makes the facility the world's largest single production plant for this plasticizer alcohol, and Evonik the largest producer of C9/C10 plasticizer alcohols in Europe.
Dr. Klaus Engel, member of Evonik's Executive Board with responsibility for the Chemicals Business Area, says: “With this investment, we’re optimizing our production network in C4 chemicals, an area where we already enjoy a leading position worldwide and have expertise going back several years.”
Plasticizers transform brittle PVC into a flexible material, making it possible to use the polymer in a greater number of consumer products. They are contained in, for example, floor coatings, cable insulation, tarpaulin fabrics, various automotive applications, and films. In addition to 2-PH and isononanol, Evonik also produces in Marl the PVC plasticizer VESTINOL ™9, at a capacity of 220,000 mt per year.
SABIC Outstanding Supplier Recognition Award 2006
Evonik Oxeno has received the SABIC Outstanding Supplier Recognition Award for the year 2006 from the Saudi Arabian company SABIC. Oxeno was awarded the prize for its excellent performance and related services with respect to the product 1-butene that it has supplied to Saudi Arabia.
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Oxeno launches new product on the market
VESTINOL INB shows a unique combination of properties
Since August 2006, Oxeno has added VESTINOL INB to its product range. The new product, of which the chemical name is isononyl benzoate, can be used as a fast gelling plasticizer, particularly in PVC plastisols. VESTINOL INB has already been successfully used in a large number of operational trials by various producers of PVC floor coverings.
The product, which is produced at the Marl Chemical Park, shows a unique combination of properties: fast gelling and very low paste viscosity. This provides downstream processors with various options for optimizing their formulation costs.
VESTINOL INB is produced by esterification of benzoic acid and isononanol, a plasticizer alcohol also produced by Oxeno, and is the first plasticizer from the group of monoalkyl benzoates ever to be used on an industrial scale in PVC. Other application possibilities include use in acrylate plastisols (PAMA) and as flexibilizers for adhesives and printing inks. The successful work of Oxeno's own research and development department has resulted in a number of worldwide patent applications for protection of know-how.
Comprehensive investigations have been undertaken during the development phase itself to rule out at an early stage any possible deleterious effects on health and the environment. The results of these investigations confirm that VESTINOL INB is not a hazardous substance, does not need to be designated as such, and can be used safely in applications for which it is intended.