Joint Corrosion Terminology Standard Announced
WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, PA — A new terminology standard is the result of a joint effort between the two major organizations that develop corrosion standards, ASTM International and NACE International. The new standard, NACE/ASTM G193, Terminology and Acronyms Relating to Corrosion, was developed by Subcommittee J01.02, Working Group on Terminology, under the jurisdiction of J01, Joint ASTM/NACE Committee on Corrosion. Committee J01 was formed as a pilot program for the two organizations to develop joint standards, preventing duplication of effort.

“The new NACE/ASTM joint terminology standard will be used by not only ASTM and NACE, but also by other corrosion organizations worldwide to prevent confusion in corrosion testing and in the interpretation of corrosion standards,” said Harvey Hack, Senior Advisory Engineer, Northrop Grumman Corp., Undersea Systems, and Chair of J01.02.

DuPont Memphis Plant wins environmental award

The City of Memphis Department of Public Works nominated the DuPont Memphis Plant for the award.

Empoyees of DuPont Memphis Plant have earned the Kentucky-Tennessee Waste Environment Federation Industrial Pre-treatment Award for outstanding performance and permit compliance in the pre-treatment of its industrial wastewater.

The DuPont Memphis Plant runs a 5-million-gallon per day pre-treatment system and has operated for more than 1,280 days in compliance with the parameters of its discharge agreement with the city of Memphis.

John Wasilik, Memphis plant manager said: “I'm extremely proud of our employees for their hard work and dedication, culminating in this award. This type of sustained compliance with our permit is a visible demonstration of the DuPont goal of zero defects in meeting our environmental responsibilities in our communities.” <more>

Citizens' advisory panel named to monitor PPG chromium cleanup in Jersey City
An eight-member citizen advisory board will oversee the clean-up of chromium contaminated site in Jersey City.

Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy signed an executive order last week creating the panel to work with city officials and professionals.

The cleanup comes after the city and PPG Industries reached a settlement to clean up a 16.6-acre site on Garfield Avenue and 19 smaller sites.

The board consists of: Markis Abraham, Bishop Robert Blount, Nicole Dupree, Annette Irving, the Rev. Kevin Knight, Elizabeth Phillips, Rex Reed and Ernesto Tolentino.

"As residents with a clear stake in the outcome of the clean-up, we believe that the City Council and the administration can be assisted by their input," Healy said.

Residents requested a citizen advisory board be created during public hearings on the PPG settlement agreement.

PPG operated a chromium refinery on Garfield Avenue from 1924 to 1963. Hexavalent chromium, a byproduct of that process, has been shown in studies to cause cancer, respiratory problems, kidney and liver damage.

A 2008 federal study found that city residents living closer to chromium-contaminated sites have significantly higher incidents of lung cancer than those living farther away.

The site, which is part of the 111-acre Canal Crossing Redevelopment Area, is slated for 4,000 housing units and a new Hudson-Bergen Light Rail station. <more>

Conn. Company Pays Fine Over Pollution Allegations
WALLINGFORD, Conn. (AP) Federal officials say a chemical company based in Wallingford will pay a civil penalty of $155,000 to resolve claims it violated the Clean Air Act.

Cytec Industries will also spend $150,000 to perform an environmentally beneficial project to resolve the allegations by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A telephone message was left Monday with a company official.

The EPA says an inspection revealed the company emitted excess hazardous air pollutants from resins, including formaldehyde and methanol. Exposure to formaldehyde can result in respiratory symptoms, and eye, nose, and throat irritation, while methanol can result in blurred vision, headache, dizziness and nausea.

Cytec has informed the EPA it has stopped producing spray dried resins. <more>

Jotun paints supports green building concept
DOHA: Jotun Paints has announced its strong support for the implementation of ‘green building’ concept amidst Qatar’s nationwide movement to adopt measures adhering to international green’ building standards.

In line with its efforts to promote eco-construction, Jotun has urged property developers to become ‘green compliant’ by implementing Jotun’s environmentally-safe paint solutions in their projects. <more>

Olympia Steel Buildings Offers Innovative Ways to Cut Energy Costs
McKees Rocks, PA (WiredPRNews.com) - Leading supplier of pre-engineered steel buildings offers an energy-efficient color option.

Olympia Steel Buildings has added an energy efficient choice for its pre-engineered commercial, industrial, agricultural and residential steel buildings. Now when you choose a color option for your pre-engineered building a new energy-efficient silicone-polyester color coating, Ceram-A-Star® 1050, is applied to the steel sheeting. This Akzo Nobel “Cool Chemistry® “ color coating system accommodates “cool” technology and “green building” compliance, has superior reflective qualities and can allow for energy credit under the federal tax code.

Using this reflective coating material on the roofing, side panels and trim of pre-engineered steel buildings and metal building systems can help reduce the amount of air conditioning needed and dramatically reduce energy costs by keeping the building up to 20 degrees cooler in the hot sun.<more>

 

Paints lose colour this Deepawali season
Paint manufacturers are seeing a sharp 10 to 15 per cent dip in sales this festive season, especially in urban markets. A host of factors have contributed to lower sales this time, including recessionary sentiments and a late monsoon. Significantly, people are moving away from the ritualistic festival season painting of homes.

The Deepawali season used to contribute 30 per cent to the total annual sales of paint manufacturers. "Till a few years back, the festive season used to see 40 to 50 per cent spurt in sales compared to a normal month, especially in north and western parts of the country," said Ramakanth Akula, vice president, decoratives, of Nippon Paints(India).

According to Akula, the paint industry is seeing 10 to 15 per cent lesser sales this year. Hemant Visariya, manager of a leading paint dealer and wholesaler at Bhaikhala in Mumbai said that for the past few years the season is witnessing a year-on-year decline in sales. "The pre-festival sales this year was even lesser than the August sales," he said. "The trend of festivalcentric painting of homes is fast receding. It is giving way to occasion-centric painting during weddings and child birth ceremonies. These days seasonal spending on home décor is not a high priority as it used to be earlier," said Amit Syngle, vice president, sales and marketing, of Asian Paints. <more>

Asian Paints to set up new plant in Haryana
MUMBAI, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Asian Paints Ltd (ASPN.BO: Quote, Profile, Research), India's largest paints maker, plans to set up a plant at Rohtak in Haryana by April 2010 with an intial capacity of 150,000 kilo litres, a top official said on Friday.

The company will spend 3 billion rupees in 2009/10 to set up the plant in Rohtak, Chief Executive Officer P.M. Murty said in an investor conference.

Asian Paints has finalised the land for its seventh decorative paint plant in Maharashtra, he said.

"The construction for the plant is expected to start from mid 2010," he said.

The company has identified about 135 acres of land near Pune in Maharashtra to set up the plant, Murty said.

"Land has been identified and we are awaiting environment clearance," he said. <more>

DuPont India plans to double headcount
DuPont India, a subsidiary of E.I du Pont De Nemours and Company, today said it was planning to double its headcount to 3,000 in the next two-three years.

The company, which currently has a workforce of 1,500 people, wants to take it to 3,000 in the next two-three years, in view of the expected growth in business Volumes from the Indian market, DuPont Chemicals Solutions Enterprise-India Sub Region (ASEAN ANZ) Marketing Manger Dipal Dinesh Parikh said.

"India has been a key growth market," he added.

Parikh said in the long-run the company's knowledge centre in Hyderabad, in which Dupont has invested Rs 150 crore, would cater to the emerging markets in South East Asia.

The company, which deal in science-based Products, had not been impacted by the global slowdown owing to the "right growth strategy", said DuPont Global Manager Textiles Defne Saral.<more>

Sri Lanka post-war building boom seen driving paint demand
Oct 04, 2009 (LBO) - Global coating and paints manufacturer AkzoNobel said a building boom anticipated with the end of a war is likely to increase demand for paints with new products launched in the market reducing maintenance costs.
"The post-conflict Sri Lanka will see a resurgent in building construction, large-scale tourist resort development, infrastructure development and growth in manufacturing and power generation," the Amsterdam, the Netherlands-based company said in a statement.
"Such development would inevitably lead to increased demand for specialty coatings." <more>

No shine for paint business
KATHMANDU, Oct 13: The Tihar festival is a time when people clean up house and try to make it as bright as they can so as to welcome Laxmi, the goddess of wealth. This makes Tihar the biggest season for paint manufacturers, who also come up with various schemes and offers to pull potential customers away from other brands.

This year´s Tihar season has been greeted by mixed views, with manufacturers seeing sales growth while retailers maintain that their business has slowed a bit. “Business has been good this year due to booming construction and housing business in the capital,” says Soumitra Roy, General Manager of Asian Paints Nepal Pvt Ltd. “The whole industry has seen a growth of at least 20 percent this year with the business worth Rs 2 billion, out of which Rs 1.1 billion is in the Kathmandu Valley alone,” he says. Roy says they record 25 percent of the whole year´s business in the two-month period during the Dashain-Tihar festival.

As a part of attracting customers, Asian Paints provides a lucky draw coupon on every purchase worth Rs 5,000, with prizes ranging from DVD players, mobiles phones and cameras to trips to Nagarkot and Pokhara. The winner of the lucky draw wins a trip for one to Dubai while the bumper prize is a trip for two to Dubai.

Paint retailers, however, haven´t shown the same optimism as manufacturers. Nandan Adhikari of Colour Spa in Old Baneshwar says that business has contracted. “It´s not that business is bad as we´re still doing well. But compared to the previous year, sales from my shop has gone down,” he says, putting the decline in business at around 30 to 40 percent. Adhikari blames the fall to the increasing number of retailers in the market and a general gloom in the  economy.<more>

Bayer MaterialScience introduces new polyurethane raw materials for waterborne, radiation-curing coatings
14 Oct 2009 , Leverkusen : Bayer MaterialScience has added three new products to its successful Bayhydrol® UV range of water-thinned, radiation-curing coating materials. These are ideal particularly for wood and furniture finishing, which demand high standards of environmental compatibility and cost-effectiveness.

“We have developed Bayhydrol® UV XP 2690 specifically for exterior wood applications,” says Jürgen Lippemeier, expert for polyurethane coatings at Bayer MaterialScience, in a presentation at the RadTech Conference on October 14 and 15, 2009. Coatings based on this polyurethane dispersion are noted above all for their outstanding weather resistance; this was confirmed in an independent study by the Fraunhofer Institute for Wood Research (WKI), which shows that the wood surface remains absolutely free of damage during weather exposure and meets the requirements of DIN EN 927-3. The test results also show that when used outdoors, the timber can withstand the elements for eight years before requiring recoating. A further advantage is that Bayhydrol® XP 2690 is suitable for both clear coats and pigmented top coats <more>

Report on Epoxy and Other Powder Coatings for Interior Applications
US demand to grow 3.5% annually through 2013 US powder coatings demand is projected to expand 3.5 percent annually to 445 million pounds in 2013, with a market value of $1.4 billion. Volume growth is expected to significantly outpace the gains of the 2003-2008 period as durable goods shipments are forecast to rebound from a weak 2008 base. However, gains in powder coatings market value will be limited by a substantial moderation in pricing following the particularly rapid increases experienced over the latter part of the 2003-2008 period. <more>

Global Coatings Consumption to Slow in 2009/Increase Into 2014
ELMWOOD PARK, NJ - According to the consulting firm of Kusumgar, Nerlfi & Growney, global coatings consumption is forecast to be off sharply in 2009 owing to the effects of the financial crisis and resulting worldwide recession. Consumption in 2009 is a projected 58.7 billion pounds, which is valued at $88.4 billion. Volume is down six percent from the prior year and dollar value is down eight percent. Recovery of the global economy will give coatings consumption an average annual increase of 5 percent in volume through 2014. In 2014, coatings poundage is forecast to be up 30 percent over 2009 and dollar value up 26 percent. However, when compared to the pre-recession year of 2008, poundage in 2014 is projected to be up 21 percent and dollar value up 15 percent.

NanoCoat Clear
NanoCoat Clear is an outstanding glass protection treatment. This protective coating creates a non-stick, water and dirt repellent surface, without changing the texture, appearance or clarity of the glass. Glass is protected against elements which would normally cause severe damage.

Prevents damage - easy to clean glass
NanoCoat Clear chemically bonds to the glass surface, protects against scale and/or salt damage, minimises build-up of dirt and grime, and makes the surface extremely easy to clean. No scraping, scrubbing or chemical cleaners needed. Glass in areas like balustrades, showers, kitchens, fencing, windows and facades stay much cleaner for longer.

Easy to apply - no curing time needed
Glass surfaces treated with NanoCoat Clear are non-stick and water repellent immediately after application. No curing time needed. Application is easy, with no special equipment or training needed <more>


ASTM Paint and Coatings Committee Approves New Standards on Touch-Up Properties and Ink Stainblocking
ASTM International Committee D01 on Paint and Related Coatings, Materials and Applications, has approved two new standards that cover architectural coating touch-up properties and ink stainblocking of paint systems. Both new standards are under the jurisdiction of Subcommittee D01.42 on Architectural Coatings.

Touch-Up Properties
When a home is being constructed, paints are subjected to a wide variety of drying conditions, which can lead to differences in appearance between the original coat and subsequent touch-up areas after the paint has fully cured. A new standard, ASTM D7489, Practice for Evaluating Touch-Up Properties of Architectural Coatings Under Various Environmental Conditions, covers variations in color, gloss and sheen that impact the touch-up capacity of a paint.

According to Douglas Mall, D01.42 member and architectural coatings applications and formulation development specialist, UCAR Emulsion Systems and Monomers, ASTM D7489 brings together a variety of different testing protocols that have been used for touch-up evaluation.

“By using ASTM D7489, it will be easier for contractors to communicate with laboratories what conditions generated product failure, with a much better chance of the laboratory being able to replicate the failure and make changes that would correct the product deficiency,” says Mall, who also notes the standard will be used by chemists in paint laboratories as well as technical service personnel in the field.

Future work on ASTM D7489 will include reproducibility and repeatability studies, especially in the area of spray application. “The next step for this standard is to develop it further as a test method, selecting more common application methods and conditions,” says Mall. “We would like to get feedback on the current practice and its usefulness.” <more>

ASTM Updates B117 - Standard Practice for Operating Salt Spray (Fog) Apparatus
This practice provides a controlled corrosive environment which has been utilized to produce relative corrosion resistance information for specimens of metals and coated metals exposed in a given test chamber.

Prediction of performance in natural environments has seldom been correlated with salt spray results when used as stand alone data.

Correlation and extrapolation of corrosion performance based on exposure to the test environment provided by this practice are not always predictable. <more>


Dow Introduces ECHELON™ MU 290 Specialty Isocyanate
Dow has commercially launched ECHELON™ MU 290 specialty isocyanate, a uretonimine-modified methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI)-based solution for adhesives, sealants, elastomers and coatings applications. ECHELON MU 290 offers a number of benefits including improved clarity and greater handling and storage flexibility.
“By expanding our ECHELON family with this new product, Dow is demonstrating its commitment to bringing new and differentiated materials for use in adhesives, sealants, coatings and elastomers,” says Janet English, Dow Polyurethanes’ global marketing manager for adhesives, sealants, and elastomers.

ECHELON MU 290 features innovative chemistry, improved shelf life, and reduced emissions compared to conventional Dow products. ECHELON MU 290 also offers good compatibility for mixing and improved clarity for the creation of products with lighter color requirements. ECHELON MU 290 can be used for the production of quasi and full prepolymers, and also for two-component urethane coatings, adhesives, sealants and solid and microcellular elastomers.

From a material handling and usage standpoint, ECHELON MU 290 is a liquid product offering improved shelf life and low temperature flexibility, allowing it to be stored more economically and conveniently at room temperature than pure MDI. Its low temperature storage stability alleviates concerns associated with the crystallization of pure MDI during shipping and handling. <more>

DuPont, National Paints ink Teflon licence deal
DuPont has signed a trademark licence agreement with National Paints, the biggest paint producer in the Middle East, to integrate Teflon surface protector into six different coating products of the paint manufacturer.

Under the agreement, National Paints will co-brand five interior/exterior paints and a wood varnish with Teflon, marking the third license of its kind to be signed in the Middle East.

National Paints will launch the products in the UAE, Oman, Jordan, Yemen, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan.

Teflon brand coatings were originally introduced for use in coating cookware, bakeware and small electrical appliances, industrial applications and other specialty coatings applications but is now widely used to finish and protect apparel, textile, paint coatings, and other diverse surface applications. All Teflon additives are tested at the Haskell Laboratory and prior to market entry.

“Teflon surface protector combines unique chemical and physical features to help create surfaces that are durable, easy to clean, and dirt pick-up resistant, making them perfect for various applications across this region,” said Luis Rebollar, Emea regional director, DuPont Titanium Technologies. <more>

AkzoNobel Introduces New Self-Healing Clearcoat
SASSENHEIM, THE NETHERLANDS -- October 8, 2009 -- AkzoNobel has introduced Sikkens Autoclear LV Exclusive. With scratch resistant clearcoats gaining in popularity among top-end auto manufacturers, it is only logical that AkzoNobel Car Refinishes is now delivering an after market scratch resistant clearcoat that the company says matches the performance of the OEM factory coatings.
Sikkens Autoclear LV Exclusive over Sikkens Autowave fits the bill perfectly: a high gloss clearcoat that is not only highly resistant to abrasion but also features self-healing properties when exposed to heat.

“Scratch resistance is getting to be more and more important in the marketplace,” says Floris Bordewijk, Segment Marketing Manager Vehicle Refinishes. “Our customers needed a high quality solution for the repair of luxury models featuring scratch resistance. Sikkens Autoclear LV Exclusive meets our customers’ requirements with leading features as an innovative self-healing clearcoat. We’re very excited about its introduction into the marketplace.” <more>

PPG Industries Announces Launch of New Website
PPG Industries (NYSE: PPG) has launched a website at ppgindustrialcoatings.com. The site will showcase PPG's coatings and their pretreatment and engineered products for automobile parts and accessories, appliances, consumer electronics, sports equipment, sportswear, heavy duty equipment and other applications. The site provides a global of capabilities through different products, technologies and markets.

BASF aims to double sales in Asia by 2020
Sept 29 (Reuters) - Germany's BASF aims to double its sales in Asia over the next ten years and grow faster than the region's market, which could consume almost half of the world's chemicals by 2020, it said on Tuesday. BASF, the world's largest chemical maker, plans to add 5,000 to its staff of 15,000 in the region by 2020 and invest 2 billion euros ($2.9 billion) there through 2013, the head of BASF's Asian business, Martin Brudermueller said during a telephone conference from Hong Kong. "BASF wants to invest close to its customers," he said. In the short term, he said he saw stabilisation at a low level in the region, but a recovery was not yet in sight. BASF is trying to cement its position in the Asia-Pacific region ahead of its global peers and is taking on national rival Bayer in some markets. While BASF made more then $13 billion euros in sales there in 2008, U.S. rivals Dow Chemical and DuPont made $6.7 billion and $5.5 billion, respectively. Many of BASF's plants in China, which accounts for almost half of the Asia-Pacific market, are now producing at capacity again. China, the world's third-largest economy, is seen growing 8.5 percent in the third quarter after 7.9 percent in the second and 6.1 percent in the first quarter fuelled by the central government's 4 trillion yuan ($590 billion) stimulus package. PROMISING SIGNALS "On a month-to-month basis, the Asian business improved, but we are still not on a satisfying level," Brudermueller said. Still, signals out of Asia were more promising than in Europe and North America, he added. BASF said the Asia-Pacific region as a whole looked set to account for 46 percent of global chemicals use by 2020, up from 38 percent last year, BASF said. <more>

Ex-DuPont chemist charged w/stealing
A former DuPont chemist is charged with stealing information from a company computer.

Delaware's US Attorney's office and the FBI have charged Hong Meng with transferring TV and computer technology information from his work-issued laptop to his personal computer when he resigned a job at the Experimental Station to take a position with DuPont's China division.

Meng's also accused of taking a job at the University of Beijing without telling DuPont, with an eye toward using the stolen information to develop the technology at the school. <more>

Silver most popular car colour for ninth year
Silver has extended its dominance as the most popular colour choice for cars and trucks worldwide. In fact, the silver and gray category actually increased by an additional five percent on the rest of the field with a market share of roughly 25 percent in 2009.

According to paint maker PPG industries people still dig on white (18 percent market share), black (16 percent) and red (12 percent). All the other colours combined add up to less than one third of all vehicles sold.

Why exactly are gray shades so popular with new car buyers? According to Jane E. Harrington, PPG manager of colour styling and automotive coatings<more>

French workers free boss at chemical plant
Workers at a French chemical plant owned by the U.S. company Dow Chemical freed their boss Tuesday after holding him overnight to protest the closing of the factory in the Loire Valley.

Christian Siest, the director of the Rohm and Hass chemical factory, was given access to the bathroom, water, telephones and the Internet while he was held, said Christophe Fillippi, a worker at the plant. <more>

parts2clean and COROSAVE with Convincing Results, Even in Difficult Times

Leading Trade Fair for Cleaning within the Production Process and Maintenance Inspires Participants with Quality and Quantity

Neuffen – 4350 visitors gathered information on offerings from 231 exhibitors at parts2clean and COROSAVE in Stuttgart from the 20th through the 22nd of October, 2009. The leading international trade fair for cleaning within the production process and maintenance was thus able to sustain the high levels of participation achieved last year with regard to both exhibitor and visitor numbers. The events, which are promoted by fairXperts GmbH, were not only convincing where quantity is concerned, but rather with regard to quality as well: Once again, the world’s most comprehensive offerings covering the entire process sequence for parts and surface cleaning awaited visitors from 26 countries. The visitors’ outstanding technical qualifications and decision making authority provided exhibitors with top quality leads, as well as concrete RFQs. Presentations held at the parts2clean expert forum, held in German, enjoyed lively interest again this year.

The first hurdle for a successful parts2clean 2009 was taken when the figures for boom year 2008 were equalled with 231 exhibitors from 14 countries. 14.3% of these exhibitors came from outside of Germany. Due to travel restrictions for trade fair visits which are still in effect at many companies, there was nevertheless a certain amount of scepticism with regard to the number of visitors who would attend. But here too, the leading trade fair for cleaning within the production process and maintenance scored exceptionally well thanks to its considerable market strength. 4350 visitors came to Stuttgart in order to gather information targeted exclusively at products and solutions for the quality-relevant work step of cleaning parts and surfaces. 18% of the visitors travelled to the event from outside of Germany, coming from 25 countries on five continents. In addition to visitor numbers which were nearly equal to last year’s figure (4482 in 2008), the outstanding technical competence and decision making authority of the visitors (more than 89% are involved in investment decision) assured that things went well at the trade fair for nearly all of the exhibitors.