German speciality chemicals firm Arlanxeo says it is strengthening its position as the world’s leading manufacturer of synthetic rubber (SR). Over the next three years, it will invest EUR mid double-digit million to modernise its production sites in Triunfo, Brazil,…
Aditya Birla completes name change of carbon black business to Birla Carbon
India’s Aditya Birla Group, which started unifying its global carbon black business under one common umbrella known as Birla Carbon six years ago, to create an organisational structure that will attempt to cut costs and take advantage of its worldwide leadership position in the…
Bridgestone breakthrough in hybrid polymer for tyres boasts higher capabilities than NR
Japanese tyre/rubber company Bridgestone Corporation says it has successfully developed the world’s first polymer to bond rubber and resins at a molecular level. This new polymer is said to boast what Bridgestone says is “unprecedented durability with crack resistance that is…
Arlanxeo introduces HNBR with new termonomer
Synthetic elastomers maker Arlanxeo says its new terpolymer TherbanST 3107 VP, a fully hydrogenated nitrile rubber (HNBR), has an innovative termonomer never been used before with HNBR rubbers. “With the new Therban ST 3107 VP, we can now offer our…
Cooper Standard undertakes ground breaking for new rubber facility in Mexico
US-based Cooper Standard says to localise elastomer mixing capabilities and support continued growth in Mexico, it recently celebrated the groundbreaking of its new 100,000 sq-ft mixing facility in Aguascalientes, Mexico. “The opening of our new in-house mixing facility in Mexico is an important step in…
Seals for climate-friendly switching stations from Freudenberg
Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), a gas 22,800 times more damaging to the climate than carbon dioxide, has been used as a quenching gas in electric substations. So operators and suppliers have been working on ways to use CO2 as a substitute.…
Tokai Carbon to acquire US carbon black manufacturer
Japan’s Tokai Carbon is to acquire Sid Richardson Carbon Ltd. (SRC) and its two affiliated companies, with the closing expected by early September 2018. The acquisition price of 34 billion yen will be funded by loans, said Tokai. Tokai says…
Indorama to acquire Czech tyre cord maker
Thailand-headquartered chemical maker Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited (IVL) has entered into an agreement to acquire Kordárna Plus a.s., the largest producer of tire cord fabrics in Europe. The Kordárna acquisition includes one production site in the Czech Republic and…
Evonik increases its precipitated silica capacity in Turkey by 400 ktonnes
German chemicals firm Evonik Industries is continuing to expand its silica production capacity in response to high demand within the tyre industry. Precipitated silica are an essential ingredient in tyres with reduced rolling resistance and, as part of Smart Materials,…
Auto leaders join forces to advance autonomous technology
Autonomous driving is creating a need for a new breed of in-vehicle networking solutions that can transmit data between the increasing number of high-resolution sensors, cameras and processing engines at blazing-fast speeds. Taking this cue, Aquantia, Bosch, Continental, NVIDIA, and…








