Carbon Black, Silica & Reinforcing Materials

In its brand new technology report, The Impact of Sustainability on Carbon Black to 2041, Smithers identifies and profiles the four leading platform technologies that will enable this transition. Adoption will increase the array of greener material options available in multiple segments – most notably tires and other rubber goods where carbon black has long been employed as a cost-effective filler. In 2022, Smithers data show demand for fillers in tires will reach 13.9 million metric tonnes; making it the leading end-use market.

Avient Corporation announced its line of near-infrared (NIR) sortable dark colorants was recently recognized by the Association of Plastics Recyclers (APR) under its Meets Preferred Guidance (MPG) program. With the recognition, OnColor™ NIR Sortable Colorants are preferred for high-density polyethylene (HDPE) resin in black and dark colors, according to the APR Design® Guide for Plastics Recyclability. In addition, testing is underway to support an application for MPG recognition for the same colorants for polypropylene resin (PP).

Following the joint call to action around recovered carbon black at last year’s Smithers rCB conference, Bridgestone Corporation and Michelin Group will deliver a joint presentation to share the results of their work with stakeholders in the rCB community to develop a proposed global standard to increase the utilization of recovered carbon black material in tires. The joint presentation will take place at the Smithers Recovered Carbon Black Conference in Berlin on November 16, 2022.

Birla Carbon, one of the leading producers of sustainable carbon based solutions globally, will participate in the Expobor International Rubber Technology Show 2022, to be held June 22–24, 2022, in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Birla Carbon announced an additional 200 kMT capacity expansion across key markets. Based on customer demand and feedback, the expansion will cover strategic markets in Europe, India, and China in support of both rubber and specialty applications. The expansions are expected to be complete in the calendar year 2024. dding capacity for surface treatment of high-value specialty materials in India, serving customers in critical applications like water-based coatings in line with sustainability-driven industry trend

W. Conshohocken, PA – ASTM International’s recovered carbon black (rCB) committee (D36) is developing a proposed standard that will be used to differentiate between different rCB products and provide quality control tool for producers and users.