30 Publicly Traded Materials Stocks - 2019 Performance and Outlook

In this post we have a look at 30 publicly traded material stocks and their allover performance in 2019.

21 out of the 30 stocks could make gains for their shareholders (date of estimation: 12.12.2019). The remaining nine corporations look forward to more sunshine in the year 2020.

Reuters Events industry report presented that on the one hand resin demand continuous to grow and on the other hand petrochemical companies feel pressure caused by slowing economic growth outlook, US-China trade war and the sudden rage against plastics.

Further, in 2020 new polyethylene resin capacity in the US will go online and could lead to an oversupply in the market. This will keep the resin prices down and puts even more pressure on the margins.

However, in the long-term perspective, plastics industry counts with a yearly polyolefin market growth of 3 to 4% per year. World population is growing and access to clean water over piping system is in high demand, as well as medical care products and electronics.

Thanks for reading & till next time!
Greetings,
Herwig Juster

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Literature:
[1] https://www.plasticsnews.com/blog/most-materials-stocks-saw-gains-2019
[2] Finanzen.net

Polymerization Plants: How to Calculate Capital Expenses Using the “0.6 Rule”



In this blog post we discuss how to estimate the investment needed to expand an existing capacity of a polymerization plant.

Basic investment concept is the economy of scale which says that the relationship of scale to investment is not linear.

It behaves in an exponential way. This is shown by the mathematical relationship formula below:

The equation has an exponent which is called the “Lang Factor”. It varies depending on the plant size you would like to realize. For a full plant expansion, the Lang Factor varies typically between 0.6 and 0.7.

In chemical engineering this exponential relationship is called the “0.6 rule” or “six-tenths rule”. For better illustration of the equation the following example of a polyethylene (PE) plant expansion is considered.


The old plant has a capacity of 1 million metric tons PE and the new plant should have 2 million metric tons capacity. Original investment was 1 billion Euros.


How much capital investment is needed to double the production capacity?

1.57 billion Euros are needed.


This is an increase of 57% in capital needed to double the capacity. There are other factors such as inflation which needs to be considered too.


Altogether, it is a useful tool for a first estimation of capital costs.


Thanks for reading & till next time!


Greetings,
Herwig Juster

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Literature: [1] Nexant Training: https://training.nexant.com/

The Future is Now: Electroactive Polymers for Robotic Applications



In recent years, functional polymers got more and more attention, especially from the robotics world. In this blog post, we are going to review the basic concepts of active polymers and make a deep dive into electroactive polymers used in robotic applications.

What are active polymers?

In general, there are non-electrically deformable polymers (NDPs) and electroactive polymers (EAPs). NDPs are actuated by non-electric stimuli such as pH, UV light exposure, or temperature changes. EAPs are actuated by an electric stimulus. EAPs can be divided into two different classes: electronic EAPs (changes by an applied electric field) and ionic EAPs (changes due to diffusion of ions). 

Major differences between electronic and ionic EAPs

Electronic EAPs need high activation fields (>150 V/µm) and these high values are close to the maximum voltage required to electrically breakdown electronic EAPs. In general, breakdown strength is the maximum dielectric strength of a given material. Furthermore, electronic EAPs can hold a certain deformation upon triggering through a DC voltage. This particular property makes them highly interesting for robotic applications. Electronic EAPs can operate under standard atmospheric conditions and have a fast response time in range of milliseconds upon triggering. Ionic EAPs need a low activation voltage of usually 1 - 5 V to obtain actuation movements. Actuation forces in ionic EAPs are lower compared to electronic EAPs and the response is also considerably slower. Hydrolysis is a concern when operating in aqueous systems. Looking at the deformation mechanism, it is more similar to a muscle deformation. Bending is the main movement of ionic EAPs. The major downside of ionic EPAs is that operation should be either carried in wet environment, or in solid electrolytes. Overall, movements such as bending, stretching, or contracting can be achieved by both, electric and ionic polymers.

EAPs and robotic applications

In recent years, robotic applications have been increasing and the mechanical as well as electrical functionality of robotic hardware have difficulties to keep up with this fast application development. With the introduction of EAPs into the robotics world, this is about to change. One motivation to use EAPs is for straight-line motions. Such kinds of motions are difficult to make without a complex powertrain behind. Robots which are equipped with several powertrains to make different kind of movements become bulky. This reduces the chance of sending such robots on sensitive missions. Partial removing of powertrains can lead to better energy efficiency too. EAPs are inherently flexible and allow applications in the field of biomimetic machines. In nature, animals have soft and smooth actuation members (e.g. hands and fingers). It is aimed to imitate such soft actuators in robotics as well. Among EAPs, piezoelectric polymers are more and more in use for actuators. Piezoelectric (mechanical stress generates an electric field) polymers use Poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)). The high electronegativity of fluorine atoms creates local dipoles (separation of the positive and negative charges) on the polymer backbone. As a consequence, polarized domains are formed by the local dipoles, together with an alignment in the electric field. In general, (P(VDF-TrFE)) copolymers have a Young’s modulus of up to 10 GPa, allowing high mechanical energy densities. Electrostatic strains of up to 2% can be obtained applying a large electric field (~200 MV/m). Apart of robotic actuators, piezoelectric polymers are used in force/pressure sensors, loudspeakers, piezo switches and printed memory applications. One application example is a button made out of a material called Solvene® (prev. Solvay S.A.; now Syensqo), where mechanical stresses lead to an electrical field which can be detected. This is shown below in the Youtube-video.

We will see more and more commercial robotic applications using EAPs. Apart of robotics, sensor functions in automotive can be taken over by such polymers from wheel condition monitoring to steering wheel motion monitoring.

Thanks for reading & #findoutaboutplastics

Greetings,

Herwig Juster

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Literature:
[1] Kim et al.: Electroactive Polymers for Robotic Applications, Springer
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUtsrN7C4Uo

Fluoropolymers As Enabler For Megatrends: From Resource Efficiency To Digitalization

The world of fluoropolymers is versatile and fluoropolymers can be seen as an enabler to support the realization of the so-called megatrends. This is the main topic of this blog post.

The base of fluoropolymers are monomers such as tetrafluoroethylene (TFE), hexafluoropropylene (HFP), and vinylidene fluoride (VDF) which can be synthesized from the raw material fluorspar. Using the monomers, polymerization to polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), and fluorinated ethylene-propylene (FEP) can be done.

In 2015, 270,000 metric tons of fluoropolymers were consumed worldwide. Altogether, the world of fluoropolymers can be divided into three major pillars: PTFE, fluorothermoplastics, and fluoroelastomers. PTFE represents with 140,000 metric tons the largest part (52%), followed by PVDF with 41,000 metric tons (15%) and on third place is FEP with 22,500 metric tons (8%). Smaller positions are occupied by ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer (ETFE), 8,400 metric tons (3%), and fluoroelastomers (FKM), which account for 31,000 metric tons (12%).

There are several megatrends which result in economic, social, and environmental shifts. Understanding megatrends and how to incorporate fluoropolymers as a material enabler will result in better allover results in the long run. Following, are some examples on how fluoropolymers can support to solve challenges ahead of us.

Resource limitation: a major topic in chemical industry is the extension of a plant’s lifetime. Using fluoropolymers for corrosion protection, especially in reactor-, mounting-, and pipelining can be seen as positive step to battle this challenge. Going further, you can design even an all-fluoropolymer reactor to increase the productivity of your reaction. Plastics industry is also investigating ways of up-cycling end-of-life products, including but not limited to fluoropolymers.

Digitalization: data transfer and data storage are major topics in the internet of things (IoT). We want to have smaller overall designs and improved performance of high frequency components. Using fully fluorinated polymers, better insulation with thinner insulation layers at higher frequencies is possible. Furthermore, non-flammable indoor high frequency (LAN) cables are needed and those cables take advantage of the flame retardant property of fluorine chemistry.

Transport changes: in automotive, we have more stringent CO2 reduction needs (Euro Six Norm) combined with reduced consumption of gasoline. Therefore, more sensors are placed on several positions in the exhaust gas flow. Using fluoroelastomers as sealing materials allows us to have a compression set at temperatures up to 280°C, which guarantees proper sealing of the sensor housings. In the field of car electrification, PVDF is a key enabler in battery technology. PVDF is used as cathode binder, separator coating, and anode binder. PFA and FKM can be used as cell gasket sealing materials as well.

Aging population: there will be increasing demand for medical devices and fluoropolymers can provide chemical stable components for dialysis devices. Also, endoscopic surgery equipment is made from fluoropolymers. This ensures proper resistance to the sterilization process. Furthermore, in emerging regions such as BRIC states, cooking devices such as rice cookers, frying pans and bakeware use non-stick coatings, driving demand for fluoropolymers in this area too.

In conclusion, fluoropolymers have established themselves in many applications and will be a major material enabler for the megatrend challenges ahead of us.

I published also are more general fluoropolymer post which you can check out here.

Thanks for reading & till next time!

Greetings,
Herwig Juster

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Literature:
[1] Kunststoffe International 10/2016
[2] https://www.solvay.com/en/brands/solef-pvdf/solef-pvdf-li-ion-batteries