NEWS
Devoting to the green energy revolution: LANXESS speaks for the advanced urethane system

October 17, 2017, Shanghai - As one of the ten business units under LANXESS, the Urethane Systems (URE) business unit displayed several core products at Beijing International Wind Power Conference and Expo 2017 today, and will exhibit the products at The 17th China Coal & Mining Expo on October 25 – 28, at the China International Exhibition Center, Beijing (W1 Hall, Stand W1250).

The urethanes business is new for LANXESS, effective immediately after LANXESS merged Chemtura Corp. in April, 2017, and it has been placed within the newly formed Urethane Systems business unit. The product range includes hot-cast prepolymers, special aqueous urethane dispersions and polyester polyols. These are components of specialty polyurethanes, used primarily in the construction, mining, oil, gas, athletic equipment and electronics industries.

On April 22, 2016, which is the World Earth Day, over 100 countries witnessed the signing of Paris Climate Agreement, a new global climate agreement, in the headquarter of United Nations. On September 3 of2016, China became a contracting party of Paris Climate Agreement and proposed the application of renewable energy technology to achieve emission reduction. Offshore wind power emerges as the best one in the new energy campaign because of its stable wind force, large power generation, small environmental impact, and low requirement for wind field.

“Global wind power’s development lies with China, and China wind power lies with offshore” has become a megatrend. On June 1st, 2017, with the withdrawal of United States from the Paris Climate Agreement, all eyes have been focused on Chinese government. To lead this new energy campaign and obtain the most advanced technologies, Chinese government is sparing no efforts to invest a large scale of investment in offshore wind power farms, and give subsidies to offshore wind power projects. The number of planned projects is far ahead in the world.

LANXESS urethane business has participated in this renewable energy revolution in China. Its advanced urethane synthesis technology has long history of application and closed-loop solution, providing protection and fixation for undersea cables which are important elements of offshore wind power, and meanwhile meeting application requirements for anti-corrosion, anti-wear, ocean current impact resistance and etc.

In addition, products from LANXESS Urethane Systems has been used in offshore oil production platforms to meet the application requirements at super strength grade under extreme environment, such as oil transmission pipe bending restriction, pipe riser, house bend stress protection, fixation of undersea oil pipelines and cables.

 “LANXESS Urethane Systems can develop a customized solution based on clients’ request”, said Tom Liu, Vice President of LANXESS Urethane Systems business unit, APAC, “we have become a valued partner and supplier designated by part processors and application developers in Asia. Both our global R&D center in Naugatuck, USA and our regional Application Development Center in Nanjing as well as service team around the world will work with our partners to provide high quality, innovative solutions for the green future of China and the whole world.”

Polyurethane elastomer is well known as outstanding wear resistance, scratch resistance, toughness and high load. LANXESS Urethane Systems is a leading producer because of its professional urethane knowledge, globalized production capacity, rich experience in application development and technological accumulation for decades.

According to different clients’ needs, the products provided by LANXESS Urethane Systems include hot cast polyurethane system, including prepolymer, chain extender and additives, special polyurethane dispersant (PUD), end-capped prepolymer and additives (USC) for surface coatings, adhesives and sealants, special thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer (TPU), and special polyester polyol. The system carefully designed by LANXESS can adapt to the most extreme environment, and exhibits extraordinary dynamic features in relevant application fields.

The different Adiprene and Vibrathane polyurethane systems exhibited by LANXESS at Beijing International Wind Power Conference and Expo 2017 and The 17th China Coal & Mining Expo are taken as an example. These products can be easily processed and used for mining, ore dressing, tailing treatment because of its outstanding wear resistance, tearing resistance and high elastic resilience. Such polyurethane systems are used extensively for equipment sealing (including hydraulic support sealing, engineering machinery sealing), screen (fine screen, flip flop screen, dewatering screen, ordinary screen), sweeper (low speed sweeper, high speed sweeper), pipeline lining and cyclone worldwide.

It is reported that the newly acquired urethanes business already brought remarkable benefits to LANXESS. According to the financial report of second quarter 2017, sales of the new Engineering Materials segment increased by 31.3 percent to EUR 361 million, up from EUR 275 million a year earlier. EBITDA pre exceptionals increased by a substantial 60.0 percent, from EUR 45 million to EUR 72 million. As a business unit of LANXESS Engineering Materials segment, Urethane Systems made a particular contribution to improved earnings of the specialty chemicals company.