It’s a case of hunt the polyurethane supplier at the ECS show in March 2013.
By Liz White, editor
This year’s European Coatings Show, being held 19-21 March at the Nuremberg Messe in Germany, will feature a number of companies showing materials related to the polyurethanes sector, among its many exhibitors.
In this preview, we highlight some of these, with a look at new developments on the PU coatings scene. This is not an exclusive list: merely the ones who supplied information to UTI.
BASF, Tosoh Europe and Umicore Speciality Materials all say they will show new catalysts at the show. BASF’s tin-free Solyfast one, initiated by UV light, gives short drying temperatures and a longer pot life, the company says.
Umicore, meanwhile, is showing its Valikat range, designed to replace mercury-based catalysts, while giving “equivalent performance,” the Belgian group claims.
Japanese PU catalyst expert Tosoh will feature catalysts to replace metal-based ones for polyurethanes based on aromatic isocyanates, along with polycarbonate diols and aliphatic isocyanates from the Tosoh-owned Nippon Polyurethane business.
Isocyanates for coatings will be a highlight of the offerings shown by new Thai/Swedish joint venture Vencorex, which also promises to reveal more on plans to expand capacity for HDI derivatives.
“Green” materials will also be a prominent feature at the coatings show, with US group Novomer showing a high-performance footwear adhesive based on its polycarbonate polyol derived from CO2. Spanish group Synthesia Internacional is showcasing its bio-based polyester polyols, which can be exploited in coatings and adhesives.
Sustainability is also a strong theme on the stand of Bayer MaterialScience, which says this aspect is driving efforts to provide optimal solutions.
The ECS show, organised by Vincenz Netzwerk and NürnbergMesse, has an accompanying congress, with a session on polyurethanes on the morning of Tuesday 19 March.
BASF to unveil new PU catalyst at European Coatings Show
BASF will present its new Solyfast catalyst for two-component polyurethane coating systems at the European Coatings Show 2013.
The chemicals group said the catalyst is initiated by UV light at room temperatures and leads to shorter drying times; it is tin-free and provides a longer pot life.
BASF will also showcase a variety of resins, additives, pigments and speciality monomers.
Christoph Hansen, head of the Dispersions for Adhesives & Construction Europe business, said that BASF will launch more than 15 tailor-made products to meet current market challenges.
BASF says experts on its resins, additives, dispersions, pigments, pigment preparations and speciality monomers will be available at Stand 523 in Hall 7A at ECS to offer advice.
Sioen branching out in colourants
Belgian group Sioen Chemicals will be showing its range of varnishes and pigment pastes for coatings made of polyurethane, PVC, epoxies, acrylics and silicones on Stand 329 in Hall 7 at the ECS show.
While its polyurethanes colouring business has previously been in rigid and CASE uses, the company has recently launching a new range of pigment pastes for colouring flexible foam, which has been well received by the industry, Alain Schuerwegen, commercial manager for the chemicals business, told UTI.
Flexible foamers are happy to see another supplier join the field, and the Sioen products have been proved in the field to give a colour intensity which the foamers appreciate, Schuerwegen said.
Since flexible foam is a business with tight margins, foamers welcome any help to cut costs, even by a little. The strong colouring ability of Sioen’s six types – black, red, yellow, blue, orange, green – can be exploited either by adding less material for the same colour intensity, saving on costs, or by achieving stronger intensity colour. The latter adds value by allowing customers to differentiate themselves, Schuerwegen indicated.
Tosoh to show new catalysts for aromatics
Tosoh Europe’s stand at the European Coatings Show 2013 will feature Tosoh Corp.’s Toyocat DB catalyst series. These are designed to replace metal catalysts in polyurethanes based on aromatic isocyanates, for use in CASE (coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers).
The Tosoh-owned Nippon Polyurethane business will display its Nippollan polycarbonate diols and Coronate aliphatic isocyanates.
Meanwhile from Hodogaya Chemical, Tosoh will show polyols based on PTMEG (polytetramethylene ether glycol) and ODI: (octadecyl isocyanate).
Other products on display include Tosoh Organic Chemicals’ Spinomar NaSS: Sodium Styrene Sulfonate and PolyNaSS materials, as well as trifluoroethyl methacrylate (TFEMA). Tosoh says TFEMA and NaSS can be used in acrylic-based polyols for polyurethanes.
Tosoh will also offer visitors in Nuremberg some insight into other group products: an example is YTZ Grinding Media, which Tosoh claims has “the lowest wear in the world.”
Innovative catalysts for PU elastomers
Umicore Specialty Materials Brugge NV offers the Valikat range of novel catalysts for polyurethane elastomers, which it says form “an ideal substitute for mercury catalysts while keeping equivalent performance.”
The Belgian company will be showcasing these catalysts at ECS 2013 in Nuremberg.
The Valikat line of PU catalysts for CASE (coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers) uses enables formulators to replace toxic mercury catalysts by long-term sustainable bismuth and zinc catalysts.
Umicore Specialty Materials Brugge (USMB) says Valikat catalysts :
- Are a long term sustainable and environmentally friendly solution;
- Are suitable for polyether, polyester and PTMEG based elastomers;
- Give improved reactivity and stability; and
- Are good co-catalysts.
USMB says it can offer customers technical advice for the reformulation of catalysts, based on its more-than-25 years of experience in catalysts for various applications.
Valikat catalysts give similar cure properties in a PU elastomer to those given by a mercury catalyst.
Umicore says this can be shown by measurements with a Scanning Vibrating Needle Curemeter (SVNC), a computer-controlled instrument which monitors the process by which liquid polymers are converted to elastomeric or glassy solids.
Nitroil to focus on Syn-Solve nano-materials
Nitroil Performance Chemicals says it will present its comprehensive range of polyurea coating materials at ECS 2013, on Stand 201 in Hall 4 A, launching new developments such as PC CR 226, a highly chemically resistant polyurea based on different chemical backbones than today’s standard.
Nitroil’s just-patented Syn-Solve reactive chemistry incorporates nano-reactive building-blocks to offer what the company claims are unique anti-microbial, anti-fouling and flame retardance prope, rties to urethane and polyurea coatings.
This is offered as an additive or a complete coating system. While conventional coatings can suffer because additives leach out, these Syn-Solv materials are non-fugitive and non-leaching.
A newly developed nano-scale dispersion product – PC SynSolve 42 – is an auto-catalytically reactive compound which accelerates the polyurethane reaction. This means it can replace activators/catalysts and eliminate fogging or VOCs (volatile organic compounds).
In addition, a range of UV-stable clear coats using recently introduced grades will be presented. The base coat PC CC 245 offers hardness greater than Shore D80 combined with good anti-growth properties in various environments. Highly resistant coatings with antifouling can be made with PC CC 246 with hardness higher than Shore D75, says Nitroil. Meanwhile, the novel PC CC 775 with Shore D50 allows higher elongation and impact resistance.
Nitroil Performance Chemicals will also present its complete range of metal and amine based polyurethane catalysts, including a broad range of chemically built-in VOC-free catalysts.
Launch of high-performance adhesive
Novomer Inc. and The Hanson Group llc have partnered to develop a high-performance flexible urethane adhesive for footwear and textile applications, which Waltham, Massachusetts-based Novomer will be showcasing at ECS 2013.
The adhesive is based on Novomer’s unique CO2-based polycarbonate polyols.These contain up to 50 percent CO2 by weight, have a 3-9 times carbon footprint advantage over existing petroleum-based polyols, and deliver very high strength and excellent durability/weatherability in urethane applications, Novomer claims.
The formulated adhesive system is free of volatile organic compounds, and forms a two-component reactive urethane which promises increased adhesive and cohesive strength as well as improved hydrolytic stability compared to conventional urethane adhesives.
Novomer will also present a technical paper on this technology during the conference, on 19 March.
Novomer points out that the carbon footprint advantage “is due to the use of CO2 as a raw material and the fact that our manufacturing process requires little energy input (mild pressures, low temperatures of only about 40˚C).” These advantages are “all enabled by Novomer’s unique, proprietary catalyst system,” the company explained.
Vencorex to highlight isocyanates for coatings
Vencorex, a supplier of isocyanates to the polyurethane industry, will participate in ECS 2013, showing its wide range of solutions to develop more environmentally-friendly technologies in Hall 4, Stand 421.
Vencorex’s offerings for coatings and adhesives will include:
Tolonate aliphatic polyisocyanate crosslinkers for high-performance PU coatings & adhesives, which Vencorex claims offer exceptional durability and non-yellowing properties on ageing, with high-solids, low-VOC options;
- Easaqua isocyanates based on “a unique patented technology.” Vencorex says these self-emulsifiable polyisocyanates are crosslinkers for “effective environmentally-friendly waterborne PU alternatives to conventional solvent-based coatings;”
- HDI and IPDI (hexamethylene diisocyanate and isophorone diisocyanate) monomers, essential building blocks for polyurethane dispersions;
- Scuranate TDI (toluene diisocyanate) an aromatic isocyanate for CASE applications;
The company says its aim is to develop alternative environmentally-benign technologies and new materials to yield savings in energy, time and money through improved productivity.
Vencorex also comments that it has “ambitions to sustain some leadership in the polyurethane chain,” and will give news on recent investments, including:
- New capacity in HDI derivatives, and
- Increase of its global footprint (manufacturing, R&D and commercial presence).
Vencorex is a joint venture between Thai petrochemicals group PTT Global Chemical and Swedish speciality chemicals producer Perstorp Group. It is a major manufacturer of aromatic (TDI) and aliphatic isocyanates, (HDI, IPDI) and their derivatives, for the polyurethane market.
A green future for Spain’s Synthesia
Chemical and PU systems business Synthesia Internacional is developing sustainable bio and recycled polyester polyols for the industry, aiming for:
- Energy and cost savings
- Greenhouse gas reduction and life-cycle improvement
- Reduction of carbon footprint
- Solving availability and price problems
- Improved properties
- New & unique technology
- Recycled raw materials
Some of these materials will find applications in adhesives, coatings and PU dispersions, Synthesia says.
The idea is to replace current fossil-based raw materials by new non-petrochemical renewable biobased raw materials with improved physico-chemical properties and with a competitive price.
Through agreements with certain bio raw materials producers, Synthesia is developing renewable bio-based aliphatic materials using dicarboxylic acids, renewable glycols (diols, triols), renewable cyclic dimers and natural oils.
Synthesia will focus on the advantages the bio-based materials can give in coatings and adhesives on the Synthecoat stand (no 422 Hall 1) at ECS 2013 in Nuremberg.
Incorez presenting new PU additives
Speciality resin and polymer maker Incorez will present two new polyurethane additives for use in sealants and adhesives at the European Coatings Show 2013.
Incorez BH is an aldimine latent hardener, specially designed for one-component PU systems and is suitable for use in both aromatic and aliphatic polymers. It prevents the production of CO2 gas and enables bubble-free curing in high-build films, the Preston, UK-headquartered company said.
Incorez STP is a silane-terminated PU polymer, designed to provide bubble-free films with good elastic properties, good adhesion to non-porous substrates, and good UV resistance.
The polymer maker said these additives can be used for flexible joint sealants, construction sealants, elastic bonding adhesives, and general sealing and bonding compounds.
Dr Shuyuan Liu from Incorez will present a paper on a new waterborne epoxy hardener for zero emission self-levelling flooring.
Formulation innovation
Baxenden Chemicals Ltd, which specialises in polyurethanes, urethane intermediates and PU dispersion technology, will be exhibiting its latest Trixene Aqua and Witcobond products for surface coatings at Stand 353, Hall 1 in the Nuremberg Messe.
