Oct 27 2009
Work to extend Arkema's Kynar PVDF resin plant in Calvert City (United States / Kentucky) is nearing completion. This latest debottlenecking of around $20 M will ensure a 15% increase in the plant's production capacity from early 2010.
" This latest extension will provide us with the necessary capacity and grades to respond to today's growth opportunities in the energy markets, in particular in the photovoltaics and lithium-ion battery sectors. In addition to the existing Pierre-Bénite plant in France dedicated to specialty grades, the increase in the Calvert City capacity in the United States and the current construction of a new production plant on the Changshu site in China, due to come on stream in 2011, boost Arkema's worldwide presence and its leading position in PVDF ", states Erwoan Pezron, Global Managing Director of Arkema's Fluoropolymers.
One fast-growing Kynar PVDF application in new energy sources is the production of extruded film as backing sheets for photovoltaic modules. The Kynar films are used in a sandwich construction, trademarked KPKTM, wherein a polyester film is placed between layers of Kynar film. The film construction protects the backside of solar panels and helps maintain operating efficiency and cell life.
Drawing on its expertise and capacity for innovation, Arkema also markets new high-molecular-weight Kynar grades with outstanding purity and adhesion characteristics, for electrode binders in lithium-ion batteries.
With their excellent resistance to weathering and chemicals, Kynar resins have many applications in architectural finishes and in construction, in components for chemical processing industry, in piping systems and components, and in high performance wire and cable jacketing. Kynar's inherent qualities also make it a special material in other high-growth applications, including hollow fiber membranes for water filtration, multilayer pipes, flexible tubing, closed cell foams and materials, and primerless powder coatings.