ROTTERDAM, Netherlands, January 18, 2010 – LyondellBasell Industries has achieved another significant milestone in the commercial introduction of its Hostalen Advanced Cascade Process (ACP) technology, with the production of two million tonnes of multimodal high density polyethylene (HDPE) produced and marketed in Europe to date.
“This significant success demonstrates that HDPE resins based on LyondellBasell’s Hostalen Advanced Cascade Process (Hostalen ACP) have become the materials of choice for customers’ small blow molding, large blow molding, pipe and film applications respectively,” said Tassilo Bader, head of LyondellBasell’s polyethylene and polyolefins solutions business in Europe, Asia and International. “To a large extent, we have attained this milestone due to the significant market penetration that has been achieved in small blow molding applications with multimodal resins such as Hostalen ACP 5831D.”
Material savings and lighter-weight products
Hostalen ACP 5831D resin has set a new performance benchmark for blow molding applications such as bottles and canisters due to its combination of environmental stress cracking resistance (ESCR) and stiffness. With the resin’s high stiffness and excellent ESCR, the wall thickness of bottles and canisters can be significantly reduced. Compared to standard monomodal and bimodal HDPE grades, LyondellBasell tests have shown that raw material savings can be achieved, along with lighter-weight final products. Hostalen ACP 5831D resin has also been shown to outperform conventional HDPE products in terms of impact strength and processing characteristics.
“Raising the property profile of HDPE underscores LyondellBasell’s strong innovation heritage,” said Bader. ”We continue to extend our leading polyolefin process technologies portfolio, which enables us to develop new products and respond flexibly to market needs.”
He added, “With this year’s successful start up of the world-scale Hostalen ACP plant by our joint venture Saudi Ethylene and Polyethylene Company (SEPC), multimodal grades will also be made available for the Asian markets, enabling us to serve global customers on a global base.”
According to Kaspar Evertz, who is responsible for the global licensing business of LyondellBasell, “More than two million tonnes produced and marketed in a mature market such as Europe, represents a remarkable achievement in our efforts to expand the use of Hostalen ACP multimodal resins in film, blow molding and pipe applications. It also affirms the superior product range offered by this process for the highly competitive HDPE market. “
Early this year, LyondellBasell began licensing the Hostalen ACP process globally. To date, more than two million tonnes have been licensed, with some capacity already installed and other capacity under construction.
LyondellBasell's licensing portfolio of polyolefin processes and services include
- Hostalen – low-pressure slurry process for the production of high-performance multimodal HDPE
- Lupotech – high pressure tubular and autoclave processes for the production of LDPE and EVA copolymers
- Spherilene – advanced swing-gas-phase process for the production of monomodal and bimodal HDPE, MDPE and LLDPE
- Spheripol – leading polypropylene technology for the production of homopolymer, random and heterophasic copolymers
- Spherizone – latest-generation polypropylene technology, based on a multi-zone reactor for the production of polypropylene and novel polyolefins
- Metocene – an innovative add-on technology for the production of specialty polypropylene products using single-site catalyst systems
Note for editorial offices: Press photographs can be also downloaded from http://lyondellbasell.mediaroom.com/file.php/286/press_hostalenacp5831d_0084_01.tif
Photo Caption:
LyondellBasell has achieved a milestone in the introduction of its Hostalen ACP technology, with the production of two million tonnes of multimodal high density polyethylene (HDPE) produced and marketed in Europe to date. This success is due to the market penetration that has been achieved in small blow molding applications with resins such as Hostalen ACP 5831D. The grade has set a benchmark for blow molding applications due to its combination of environmental stress cracking resistance (ESCR) and stiffness.
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LyondellBasell Industries is one of the world’s largest polymers, petrochemicals and fuels companies. We are the global leader in polyolefins technology, production and marketing; a pioneer in propylene oxide and derivatives; and a significant producer of fuels and refined products, including biofuels. Through research and development, LyondellBasell develops innovative materials and technologies that deliver exceptional customer value and products that improve quality of life for people around the world. LyondellBasell (www.lyondellbasell.com) is privately owned by ProChemie GmbH, a joint venture of Access Industries and ProChemie Holding Ltd.
For information, contact:
Media – Waldemar Oldenburger, +49 69 305 854 59
waldemar.oldenburger@lyondellbasell.com
