polymerguru

Borouge Group International AG (“Borouge International”) today announced that, following the successful completion of performance testing, it has delivered the first batch of materials from its new #CrossLinkedPolyethylene ( #XLPE ) plant in the #UAE to customers in the region. The new XLPE plant adds 100,000 tonnes of annual capacity, doubling Borouge International’s current XLPE output in the Middle East and Asia region per year. XLPE is used in high-voltage underground and underwater #powercables that support grid expansion, electrification, and the transformation of energy systems. Borouge Plc, part of #BorougeInternational , operates the region’s only XLPE plant of its kind, strengthening its ability to meet rising demand from fast-growing economies and data centers across Asia and the Middle East. Borouge International collaborated with Ducab, a leading UAE-based end-to-end energy solutions provider and manufacturer of high-quality #cables and #wires , to successfully test th...

Avantium N.V., a leader in renewable and #circularpolymermaterials , today announced a strategic partnership with #SojitzPla -Net Corporation to drive the adoption of Avantium's plant-based materials FDCA and PEF (marketed under the #releaf® brand), in the Japanese market. The partnership combines Avantium’s innovative technology with Sojitz Pla-Net’s extensive commercial network and expertise in plastics, packaging materials and sustainable solutions. As one of Japan’s leading plastics trading companies and part of the Sojitz Group, Sojitz Pla-Net will support market development and customer engagement for releaf® across Japan, while also exploring opportunities to jointly develop business with customers and partners in international markets. FDCA ( #furandicarboxylicacid ) is a plant-based building block for the production of PEF ( #polyethylenefuranoate ), Avantium’s flagship polymer marketed under the releaf® brand. PEF is #plantbased , recyclable and offers superior barrier p...

𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 💥 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡 𝐈𝐧𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞: 𝐀 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐌𝐨𝐥𝐝 💥 ▶️ Injection pressure is essential to ensure complete cavity filling, especially for thin wall parts or complex geometries. However, excessive injection pressure can significantly reduce the lifespan of a mold if its components are not properly designed and locked. ⚙️ At Star Moldes, we pay close attention to every locking and supporting element to ensure the mold withstands production demands over millions of cycles. 🔩 💡 Some mold types are especially susceptible to damage caused by high injection pressures: 🔹 𝐌𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐥𝐢𝐦 𝐨𝐫 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐜𝐜𝐮𝐫. 🔹 𝐌𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭. 🔹 𝐔𝐧𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐦𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐞...

Research team at #RochesterInstituteofTechnology (RIT) in New York, US, is working on a plant-derived material that could replace certain plastic uses in packaging. The work centres on starch, which is being adapted into a #biopolymer layer for paper-based packaging. The project is led by Sneh Bangar, assistant professor of packaging science in RIT’s College of Engineering Technology and leads the  #foodpackaging and shelf-life testing laboratory. Bangar said: “We were able to achieve the same barriers that #plasticlamination or plastic coatings give. The goal is not to eliminate plastics but to reduce the use of plastics. “When it comes to packaging, the food category contributes the most to the need for packaging options. We can add value to alternative packaging options with this new work. The researchers used crosslinking methods to modify pearl millet #starch and change its internal structure to improve the material’s viscosity and make it more stable. Crosslinking is a chemi...

𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐏𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐥𝐲 𝐖𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐥𝐲 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 A Memphis grocer's cost-cutting innovation in 1916 inadvertently created the conditions that made plastic packaging indispensable to modern commerce. History, as usually taught, focuses on big actions leading to big results — Caesar, Napoleon, the American and French Revolutions, etc. That is not always the case. Sometimes a small act can have oversized consequences. The most astonishing ones are those whose impact can be directly anticipated, but in an area far removed from its original intent. One hundred ten years ago (September 6, 1916, to be exact) in Memphis, TN, Clarence Saunders, someone who knew nothing about plastics, did something that drastically changed the future of our industry. The results were entirely predictable, but seeing that would have been challenging. Looking directly at the fledgling plastic industry would n...

𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚 𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 — 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐡𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐲. NIR sorting systems identify polymers by recording how light scatters off a sample. Carbon black absorbs too much of that light, leaving detectors without a usable signal. The result: black plastics are routinely diverted to incineration or landfill, even when the underlying polymer would otherwise hold value. Raman spectroscopy offers a different approach. A small fraction of scattered light undergoes an energy shift that reveals molecular bond structure. Because Raman scattering occurs at a different wavelength than the incident laser, it can be distinguished and measured even in black and transparent plastics. Canon's TR-A100 applies this principle as a desktop instrument for material verification and purity checking — not ...

Cambium, a developer and manufacturer of advanced materials for defense and high-performance applications, will launch its breakthrough #lasereyeprotection (LEP) for commercial and private pilots at the upcoming Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) 70th Air Safety Forum September 14–17, 2026 in Washington, D.C. Cambium selected pilot eyewear industry leader #FlyingEyes® , a professional-grade #eyewear brand founded and engineered by pilots. The bespoke eyewear will feature Flying Eyes frames fitted with Cambium #LEP lenses. This introduces a new standard in laser protection, allowing pilots to comfortably and seamlessly protect their eyes from disorienting green laser dazzle, while still easily reading their instrument panel with excellent visual acuity and color contrast, even during night flights. Laser strike incidents are a clear and present safety threat for pilots that can cause flash blindness and transient eyesight impairment after just one second of exposure. These so-called ...