Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News 22-03-2021 - Arhive
Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
Petrochemicals Naphtha PETRecycling ACN Trend
-Renault joins Veolia and Solvay in battery recycling consortium
Renault, Veolia and Solvay have announced a collaboration in which metals from end-of-life EV batteries in Europe will be recycled in a closed-loop circular economy.
Veolia and Solvay initially partnered in September 2020, and the consortium has now been strengthened through the addition of Renault and its knowledge in the area of EV battery lifecycles and its circular economy experience. Solvay brings expertise in chemical extraction of battery metals, and Veolia an understanding of lithium-ion battery dismantling and recycling.Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
The partners’ aim is to reduce CO2 emissions, preserve resources and create value across the battery chain by creating a secure and sustainable supply source for metals used in EV batteries such as nickel, lithium and cobalt.
The trio seeks to achieve this by combining individual knowledge at each step in the chain, from the collection of dead batteries, through to dismantling, extraction and the purification of removed metals, and by enhancing existing mechanical and hydrometallurgical battery recycling processes.
-Antimicrobial Based on Elemental Zinc Reduces Coronavirus on Surfaces by Up to 99%
Parx Materials’ Saniconcentrate expected to be a strong and safe tool in preventing the future spread of viruses. Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics Newsws
Dutch/Italian technology start-up Parx Materials, based in Rotterdam, which first launched its patented Saniconcentrate antimicrobial technology in 2014, has now proven that its additive technology reduces Covid-19 virus without harmful toxins on surfaces by up to 99% in 24 hours. Unlike other antimicrobial options, it achieves this without biocides, leaching or harmful side effects, creating a breakthrough option for applications like touch surfaces in public areas, medical devices or food contact applications.
-China Buys More Iranian and Venezuelan Oil, in a Test for Biden
Increased sales and higher prices are helping Tehran and Caracas resist U.S. pressure
China has sharply increased its imports of oil from Iran and Venezuela in a challenge to two Biden administration foreign-policy priorities, according to U.S. officials, undermining key diplomatic leverage Washington needs to restart long-stalled negotiations. Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
China is expected to import 918,000 barrels a day from Iran in March, which would be the highest volume since a full U.S. oil embargo was imposed against Tehran two years ago, according to commodities-data company Kpler.
That trend is confirmed by other shipping trackers, some of which see those sales at 1 million barrels a day.
“If it sells 1 million barrels a day at current prices, Iran has no incentive to negotiate,” said Sara Vakhshouri, president of Washington-based SVB Energy International and an expert on Iran’s oil industry.
-KHS closes the recycling loop on shrink film
German machinery maker KHS has made it possible to use film made entirely of recyclate on all its shrink packers in the TSP, WSP, SP and PSP series, with existing machines easily adapted thanks to their modular design.
Martin Thyssen, packaging expert for cardboard, paper and shrink film at KHS, told Plastics in Packaging that the company has invested a lot of development work in its shrink packers in recent years, with optimisations achieved in film processing and pack quality. Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
“That has made it possible to process film made of 100 per cent recycled material on all KHS shrink packers – with the same result as using virgin material,” he explained. “The type of conversion for existing machines depends on many parameters, including machine type, film used, and container used. This is why KHS cannot give a blanket answer on the type of conversions.”
-Pearlized Masterbatches for BOPP Film Packaging
Tosaf’s ZD color and additive concentrates for pearlized BoPP films boast quality, production efficiency and flexibility in meeting OEM requirements.
A new series of pearlized and white-pearlized color and additive masterbatches which reportedly enable manufacturers of BOPP films to flexibly address specific requirements of their customers in the packaging and label industries has been launched by Israel’s Tosaf’s (U.S. office in Bessemer, N. C.).
The Tosaf ZD masterbatches are suitable for the production of pearlized and white-pearlized films in a wide density range from 0.55 to 0.80 g/cm3, with ZD1738HP optimized for up to 0.65 g/cm3 and ZD2446HP for medium to higher densities. Typical applications include packaging for soap, confectionery, ice cream, baked goods, candy, and snacks. Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
In the label sector they are designed for wrap around (WAL), in-mold (IML), cut & stack and pressure sensitive labels (PSL).
-EU chemicals exports, imports fall in January on renewed lockdowns, Brexit impact
Chemicals exports from EU countries to the rest of the world fell in January, in line with overall trade in goods which took a hit from renewed measures to slow down the spread of the pandemic, said Eurostat on Thursday.
Imports of chemicals into the EU took a hit of 16.5%, although the overall volumes of imports were around half of those in exports.Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
Eurostat also confirmed how the UK’s withdrawal from the EU’s Single Market on 1 January affected trade in goods between the two areas, in line with figures published by the UK’s national statistics body earlier this week.
The EU has traditionally been a net exporter of chemicals, with chemicals output in several countries within the bloc – notably Germany – being key in the global chemicals trade.
Several EU countries, including Germany or France, were in January under lockdown measures as the pandemic was spreading again; those lockdown measures remain in place, while as of this week Italy has also gone into stricter measures.
-ecoVeritas launches UK Plastic Packaging Tax calculator
Packaging data specialist ecoVeritas has launched a free online tool for packaging suppliers, brands and retailers to calculate their future costs in preparation for the UK’s Plastic Packaging Tax.
The tax calculator enables users to input information relating to the amount of plastics packaging they manufacture, import and export, before generating an estimate of direct costs based on the current draft of the plastics tax legislation.
It also allows users to calculate the potential annual tax savings that could be achieved by increasing the amount of recycled content used in the manufacture of plastics packaging. Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
The UK Plastic Packaging Tax will come into force on 1 April 2022. It is part of a new UK law to reduce the environmental impact of packaging and cut manufacturers’ reliance on virgin plastics.
The tax will be charged at a rate of £200 ($278) per tonne of plastics packaging that does not contain at least 30 per cent recycled plastics. It will apply to plastics packaging has been manufactured in, or imported into, the UK.
UPM Raflatac’s revolutionary Vanish PCR plastic labeling materials for the U.S. market have been independently certified by SCS Global Services as featuring at least 90 percent post-consumer recycled content (PCR) in both the face and liner.
The UPM Raflatac Vanish™ PCR range of clear, white and silver PET films label materials enables brands to maximize eye-catching visuals with more sustainable labels that support the circular economy. Ideal for food, beverage, or personal care end-uses, these thin yet robust products use less raw material compared to other standard clear-on-clear products. Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
Vanish PCR is the only clear-on-clear labeling solution on the market that incorporates recycled content, featuring PET face and liners made from 90 percent post-consumer recycled content. The recycled content in all of the UPM Raflatac 1.2 mil and 0.92 mil face and liner label materials have been verified in accordance with SCS Global Services’ Recycled Content Standard.
-Skittles bowled over by compostable packaging
Confectionery firm Mars Wrigley has announced a two-year partnership with Danimer Scientific to develop home compostable packaging, with Skittles in the US set to be the first brand to use it from the end of this year.
Danimer Scientific’s Nodax polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) is produced through natural fermentation processes using plant oils such as soy and canola and biodegrades in both soil and marine environments. Mars will continue to evaluate opportunities to scale this technology across its portfolio of brands and categories.
The two companies plan to introduce Nodax PHA into flexible and rigid packaging that breaks down in both industrial composting facilities and backyard compost units, offering an enhanced value proposition for environmentally conscious consumers and retailers. Petrochemicals RenewablePlastics News
The joint development agreement is a key component of Mars Wrigley’s comprehensive strategy to transform its packaging portfolio to support a circular economy and to drive progress against its goal of 100 per cent reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging by 2025.
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