Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - Blowing agent manufacturer Arkema has been given the US Environmental Protection Agency's 2007 Climate Protection Award for improving the energy efficiency of its manufacturing sites and for developing products that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The award was specifically given for Fluorochemicals' Transcend blowing agent additive for the rigid foam market. The award was presented on 1 May in Washington DC.
"Arkema's team is protecting the climate through innovation, conservation and energy efficiency," said Dr Kathleen Hogan, director of the EPA's Climate Protection Partnership Division, in a 14 May announcement from Arkema. "Arkema also advocates responsible use of powerful non-CO2 greenhouse gases and has proposed that manufacturing associations worldwide use strict codes of practice to limit their emissions."
Arkema said it has long advocated responsible use and phase-out of materials that contribute to global warming and ozone depletion. Since 1990, the company has reduced its use of greenhouse gases in manufacturing by two-thirds, it added.
"This award is an acknowledgement of Arkema's commitment to being a part of the broader solution to the growing complexities of climate change," said George Cornelius, president and ceo of Arkema Inc., in the company statement. "This is the first in a family of innovative Transcend products that address our customers' changing environmental needs," said Kirsten Makel, global business director for Arkema's Foams, Solvents and Aerosols.
Arkema's director of regulatory activities for Fluorochemicals, Tom Werkema, was specifically acknowledged for his leadership role in helping the fluorochemicals industry reduce its usage of greenhouse gases.
In 2005, Arkema pointed out, the EPA granted Arkema's Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) petition. This allowed Transcend to be used as part of a blowing agent system for the direct replacement of various greenhouse gases, including chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) and hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) blowing agents in most rigid polyurethane foam uses. Today, Transcend is used to reduce the amount of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) used in foam products by up to 25 percent, Arkema concluded. "
