Stora Enso to Build Production Unit for Biocomposite Granules

Stora Enso is investing EUR 12 million to build a new production line that will manufacture biocomposite granules at Hylte Mill in Sweden. Biocomposite granules enable the use of renewable wood to substitute a large portion of the fossil-based materials in products typically produced in plastics. Production is scheduled to begin during the first quarter of 2018. The annual capacity will be approximately 15 000 tons per year. The ramp-up of the new production line and a new type of manufacturing is expected to take 2–3 years.

Innovative & Sustainable Alternative

“This investment is part of Stora Enso’s transformation into a renewable materials company and demonstrates our ability to provide an innovative and more sustainable alternative to plastics. With this new biocomposite production line, we are well positioned to capture growth opportunities in climate and environmental friendly materials,” says Jari Suominen, EVP, Head of Stora Enso’s Wood Products division.

Best Use of Available Resources

At Hylte Mill, Stora Enso can make best use of the resources available: an industrial infrastructure, the local supply of raw material and a highly competent workforce. The estimated total employment impact for Hylte is 20 FTE’s.

Once finalized, the investment will increase Stora Enso’s Wood Products sales by approximately EUR 25 million and will exceed the division's profitability target, operational return on operating capital (ROOC) of 18%. The biocomposite business will belong to the Wood Products division.

Biocomposite granules are a mix of wood fibers, polymers and additives and are used as raw material for injection molding and the extrusion of products traditionally manufactured solely from plastic. The material can be used in a wide range of products from consumer goods (dish brushes, pots, etc.) to industrial applications, such as pallets or load bearing structures reinforced by glass fiber.

Source: Stora Enso

Health Checkup Packages for CORPORATES in INDIA

BIOLINE LABORATORY

•a chain of clinical laboratory , 

• is an ISO 9001:2008 laboratory, certified by TUV Rheinland

•NABL accredited

•dedication, commitment, ambience, technology, human resource, technical expertise, customer care, accuracy are the main pulses of Bioline laboratory

•Branches in Tamilnadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.North India presence will be available in major cities in 2017.

Corporate Social Responsibility:

•is all about people –  patients, staff,  partners and  local community -  Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is important for us

•committed to CSR and Our diagnostic services benefited by lakhs of people in south India

•In many of the corporate organization we conducted camp - lot of employees got their new life from our diagnostics services

•we created the Preventive health care awareness in the society

Major Corporate Customers:

1. Enoah Isolution Pvt Ltd

2. G4S Secure solution India Pvt Ltd

3. Union Bank of India 

4. Abbott India 

5. KG Denim Limited

6. Azidus

7. Step pharma

8. FTC & many more

Why Choose us:

•We are fully compliant

•We are having clinical staff over 25 years of combined experience

•We are having the state of the art medical equipment

•We are having strong emphasis on quality control & policies

• our lab is a one stop shop literally & strong Corporate Social Responsibility

•has a strong digital presence & centers have loaded amenities

For camps,kindly contact me through my email with details.We will reach you with our quotation shortly.

Contact details:

Muthuramalingam

Mob+91-9884895802

rosaram211@gmail.com

My Linkedin page:

http://in.linkedin.com/pub/muthuramalingam-krishnan/8/4b4/5a4

New Technique to Create Biodegradable Cellulose-based Plastic: Tuskegee Univ.

Currently, most bioplastics are produced using renewable biomass resources, such as vegetable fats, oils, and sweet potatoes, which readily decompose once they are buried in the ground. However, these materials lack the necessary strength and flexibility required to extend the life of plastics in the packaging and electronic industry.

New Discovery in Plastics:

To date, there have been limited successes in inventing new solvents to dissolve cellulose for commercialization usage. Also, the increase in toxicity associated with current dissolution techniques has made cellulose less attractive for use in the plastic industry. But, Tuskegee University researchers have discovered a new method that can be used to suspend tiny particles of cellulose in an organic solvent that is commonly used in the plastic industry. This technique could remove the current limitations and allow for the creation of a new kind of biodegradable cellulose-based plastic. This product can be used in the production of items ranging from packaging materials to plastic covers. 

Dr. Michael L. Curry, an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Associate Adjunct Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, along with his second-year graduate student, Donald H. White, both work as members of and in collaboration with the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology (Phase II), a multi-institutional partnership devoted to investigating the fundamental molecular mechanisms by which nanoparticles interact with biological systems. 

Process:

Taking full advantage of the new dispersion of cellulose technique, Curry and White experimented with the development of cellulose-based plastics using both biodegradable and non-biodegradable polymer matrices. Unlike earlier bio-based plastics, their cellulose-based plastics are flexible and show significant improvements in the storage modulus which demonstrates an increase in the rigidity and strength of the composite material. 

Curry stated that given that the global production of plastics will exceed 300 million tons annually in the near future and greater than 98 percent of it is made with crude oil and other fossil fuels, this new invention will not only help us to meet our Center’s goal of “using fundamental chemistry to enable the development of nanotechnology in a sustainable manner, for societal benefits,” but will also limit the amount of non-biodegradable plastics ending up in our land fields and oceans, and the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere by plastics that contribute to global climate change.

Source: Tuskegee University

Breathing Facade Skin Made of Covestro’s Transparent Solid Polycarbonate Sheets

The idea behind the seminal Breathing Skins showroom is to use the outer envelope of buildings to variably adapt the indoor climate to the needs of the occupants. The project centers around a breathing facade skin using transparent solid sheets of the polycarbonate Makrolon®. This is modeled on a natural, organic skin. 
Covestro recently won the innovation award of the European Polycarbonate Sheet Extruders Organization (EPSE) for this development. It was the eighth time the organization had held the Best Polycarbonate Projects Competition to recognize outstanding applications with polycarbonate sheets. 

Controllable Permeability:
Tobias Becker’s proprietary development makes it possible to infinitely vary the permeability of facades and thus adapt the indoor climate to the user’s specific requirements. Germany’s Federal Minister for the Environment Barbara Hendricks and Maria Krautzberger, president of the German Federal Environment Agency, have now presented Tobias Becker with the Federal Ecodesign Award in the Young Talent category. 
The inspiration for developing a breathing facade skin comes from the idea of ventilating an interior via pore-like air ducts without creating a draft.
These ducts can be sealed pneumatically so as to be airtight by applying a small overpressure to the facade element. 
A low-energy compressor controls around 140 pneumatic “muscles” per square meter without any visible technology. 
Applying a small under pressure widens the reversible air ducts fitted between two perforated, transparent polycarbonate (PC) solid sheets of Makrolon® GP clear 099 polycarbonate from Covestro. 
The sandwich design weighs less than eleven kilograms per square meter. 
The showroom is a prototype for testing breathing skins facade technology and experiencing it at an emotional level. The organic-like facade skin and the soft, meandering form of the Breathing Skins showroom complement each other perfectly. Geometrically speaking, the facade is made up of six arcs with different radii. The solid sheets’ good thermoforming properties produced excellent results.
The facade is over ten meters long, has an area of 25 square meters and is split into several elements.
To reinforce the image of a continuous facade, the load-bearing parts of the sandwich facade elements are all made of solid polycarbonate sheets. 
The interior has an area of eight square meters and a clear height of 2.4 meters.
A wooden structure with edges 4.5 by 4.5 meters long marks the vertical limit of the interior. 
The ceiling panel rests on four round, recessed larch supports mounted outside the interior. 
The modular components are so small and light that each of them can be carried by two people. 

The more the pneumatic muscles dilate, the more the facade’s appearance changes. Permeability for light and air as well as see-through visibility can be modified locally and gradually. The concept is based on biomimetics, the basic idea of which is to observe nature closely and turn the findings into technical applications.

Breathing Skins Showroom:

The laminated birch surfaces make you want to touch them, and create a warm effect that provides an excellent contrast to the plastic facade.

More Than Just Transparent Glazing:

The showroom demonstrates that polycarbonate sheets can be used for more than just transparent glazing in architectural applications. Their mechanical properties and the fact that they are milled during the machining process enable easy integration of controllable elements such as the pneumatic muscles. Transparent facades of all building typologies thus become a tool for controlling energy management and interior climate.

Source: Covestro

RESINEX Adds Trinseo’s Biocompatible PS for Medical Devices to its Portfolio

RESINEX has recently added STYRON™ 2678 MED, a biocompatible polystyrene from Trinseo, to its portfolio of polymers. 

ISO Compliant Biocompatible PS:
This general purpose injection molding grade has undergone testing based on ISO 10993 standards and is suitable for use in approved medical applications. It combines the versatility of polystyrenes with the specifically high reliability of supply needed in this industry, and it meets extended demands in terms formulation lock, notification of change and lot traceability. 

Typical applications include clear rigid packaging, diagnostic components, petri dishes and housings for test kits.


Special Characteristics:
Beyond the general advantages of polystyrene, such as outstanding transparency, high stiffness, rigidity and heat resistance, STYRON™ 2678 MED also provides further special characteristics required for medical devices including chemical resistance to fight infection. The material can be sterilized by ethylene oxide (EtO) and shows very good radiation stability when subjected to gamma- or e-beam sterilization, even at high doses. STYRON™ 2678 MED may also be processed further with secondary operations such as solvent bonding, welding and laser marking, typical for medical devices.

Hence, STYRON™ 2678 MED opens new applications for polystyrenes, going beyond those of general purpose food grades.


Source: RESINEX

PEEK-replacing Nano-reinforced Nylon Alloy by Foster for Medical Device

Foster Corporation has introduced Nanomed MAX® compounds for medical device components that require high strength, yet cannot use metals or traditional reinforced plastics. 
These compounds, based on an alloy of meta-xylene diamine polyamide (MX nylon), are United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Class VI tested and suitable for reusable instruments or components that must withstand gamma, e-beam and ethylene oxide sterilization.

Need of Nano Reinforced Nylon Alloys:

Minimally invasive procedures are increasingly used throughout the healthcare industry. New procedures require instruments, fixtures and components that do not interfere with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computerized axial tomography (CAT), fluoroscopy, and x-ray imaging. Metals are not suitable and plastics often require reinforcing additives, such as glass fiber, to provide sufficient strength for structural components. 

However, these traditional additives are too large for molding or extruding intricate device components with thin wall sections. Unreinforced, high strength plastic options, such as polyetheretherketone (PEEK), are often cost prohibitive.

Nanomed MAX Compounds:

Nanomed MAX compounds incorporate nanoclay particles into a high strength nylon alloy. 
These platelet-shaped particles, less than a nanometer thick and up to 1000 times greater in surface diameter, provide reinforcement at the molecular level. 
This enhances strength and rigidity of the polymer without hindering flow into thin sections.
Nanomed MAX compounds include less than 10% by weight nanoparticles resulting in 15% more tensile strength than unmodified PEEK, for approximately half the price.

Source: Foster Corporation


For polymer related news,pls visit my blog http://polymerguru.blogspot.in

Special free webinar offer for the polymer professionals

What: free online webinar

When: December 14th at 16:00 GMT

Registration: http://bit.ly/PolymerWebinarRegistration

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