Japanese chemicals company Mitsui Chemicals, Inc. has commissioned a new polymeric compounding facility in Shanghai, China.
The new plant, operated by Mitsui Chemicals Functional Composites (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., will manufacture Milastomer and Admer for the automotive and packaging material markets.
Milastomer is an olefinic elastomer based on olefin resin. According to Mitsui Chemicals, it is lightweight, highly flexible and adapts well to various molding methods. Milastomer has a range of applications in the automotive industry, offering the potential to improve fuel consumption, and at the end of its useful life the material is easily recyclable.
Applications for Milastomer include automotive glass run channels, automobile interior materials and mudguards. In other sectors it can be used for building material gaskets, civil engineering joint materials and sporting goods.
Admer, the other product to be made at the new facility, is an adhesive resin designed to bond to various polyolefins, ionomers, polyamides, gas barrier resins such as ethylene vinyl alcohol, ceramics, glass and metals. The modified polyolefin can be used for automotive fuel tanks and also has applications in the packaging industry, such as bottles and tubes for food or cosmetics, as well as food sheets and films.
With the new plant, Mitsui Chemicals hopes to capitalize on China's rapid growth in the automotive and packaging material sectors. The Shanghai business will serve as its compound base and support the company's efforts to become a major supplier to manufacturers in Eastern China.
