Addressing Megatrends and Societal Needs (icon)Addressing Megatrends and Societal Needs (icon) ADDRESSING MEGATRENDS AND SOCIETAL NEEDS

Clariant offers solutions that meet the needs of current and future generations.

Important step towards bioeconomy

Clariant strengthens its commitment to the field of bioeconomics at the Bavarian locations of Straubing and Planegg. In Straubing, the position in the field of renewable raw materials will be expanded with the construction of another biotechnical pilot plant. The new building will expand the existing, very successful biotechnological pilot plant in which the biofuel ethanol is obtained from unusable plant residues such as wheat, barley and corn straw using the sunliquid® method – the largest plant for climate-compatible second-generation bioethanol thus far.

The special feature of this plant: Interested parties from all over Germany will be able to test their ideas and implement research results in the field of biotechnology in products there. There is a great demand for sustainable products. Therefore, Clariant has decided to open the new facility to all research-based companies that manufacture biotechnological products such as biopolymers or enzymes.

Companies have already signaled keen interest in Straubing in the planning phase. For example, materials for detergents will be tested there that promise gleaming white linen even at low temperatures, or materials for plastic bottles and diapers made from renewable raw materials. What was previously explored in laboratories on a small scale can now be developed here on a larger scale for application readiness. This creates a showcase project that does not exist anywhere else. The Bavarian government supports this facility with funding of EUR 20 million.

Clariant intensifies the development of bio-based products and fuels, meaning those based on renewable raw materials, with a new Biotechnology Center and more than 100 employees in the Bavarian town of Planegg. In addition to the Clariant Innovation Center in Frankfurt, the new facility is another important global research center. Biotechnology is a key technology in the shift away from fossil fuels.

Innovative Product Solutions

  • CATALYSTS

  • HYDRAULIC FRACTURING

  • BENTONITE

  • LICOCENE

  • PIGMENTS

  • HEALTHCARE AND PHARMACEUTICAL PACKAGING

  • CATALYSTS

    Combat harmful emissions

    EnviCat®

    90 %

    less greenhouse gases are exhausted due to neutralization with EnviCat®

    Catalysts can help reduce pollutants in the air. The most familiar application is in automotive exhausts. Hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide are converted from the exhaust gas in the presence of a catalyst. A less-known source of pollution is the nitrous oxide (N2O) – more commonly known as laughing gas – created by industrial processes. After methane gas, nitrous oxide is the third most harmful greenhouse gas and is responsible for about 6% of man-made climate effects.

    Nitrous oxide is about 300 times more damaging to the climate than the same amount of carbon dioxide (CO2). Nitrous oxide results mainly from the production of nitric acid, which is used in the production of fertilizers and other processes. The innovative catalysts EnviCat® N2O and EnviNOx® developed by Clariant reduce the nitrous oxide in the production process to harmless nitrogen (N2) and water (H2O).

    In an ingenious process, the catalyst EnviCat® N2O extracts from the exhaust gas of nitric acid plants nearly all the nitrous oxide and converts it into the harmless substances oxygen, nitrogen and water in two stages. In addition, different variations of EnviCat® have generally been proven as very successful in the elimination of nitrogen oxides in the exhaust air of industrial production processes.

  • HYDRAULIC FRACTURING

    Environmentally compatible

    Increasingly the extraction of oil and gas requires innovative chemical technologies that support production from harsher environments such as extremes of temperature and pressure. Additionally regulation and the concern of the public regarding the use of chemicals in the environment is driving a need for more environmental and sustainable solutions.

    Unconventional resources are a good example of where innovative technology has enabled oil and gas to be extracted economically through horizontal drilling and multi-stage hydraulic fracturing (fracking). The hydraulic fracturing market is constantly under pressure to reduce cost, increase efficiency and address regulations and public concerns over the application of environmentally harmful chemicals. To support the application of technologies that address these points Clariant has developed the unique HOSTAFRAC™ product line.

    Hydraulic fracturing involves pumping water, sand and chemicals at high pressure into the rock causing fractures. These fractures create paths for the released hydrocarbons that are producted to surface.

    The function of the chemicals added to the sand and water is to improve the ability to pump high volumes by reducing viscosity and to prevent damage from bacteria or solids formation. While these chemicals do not come into contact with groundwater, it is desirable that they be non-toxic as they form part of the liquids that are retrieved and processed at the pumping site to prevent any environmental harm should they inadvertently come into contact with ground water sources.

    HOSTAFRAC™ technology adds value by greatly improving the ability to pump the fracturing fluids and to recover the same fluids once the well is brought onto production following the fracturing operation. Increasing the efficiency of pumping the fluids and the rate and volume at which they are recovered is beneficial by reducing energy costs from pumping. Furthermore, the benefit in producing a higher volume of fracturing fluid back to surface which means the well can produce oil or gas more effectively and the water flowed back can be re-used for further fracturing operations.

    HOSTAFRAC™ is an EcoTain® technology. EcoTain® products are those that are both sustainable and environmentally acceptable, and therefore benefit hydraulic fracturing by replacing otherwise toxic and harmful chemicals. One example is the replacement of 2-butoxyethanol (2-BE) with HOSTAFRAC™.

    HOSTAFRAC™ allows a better return flow of oil, gas and water to the surface. This is achieved by reducing the surface tension and adhesion forces of the liquids that are pumped in. This way water, , oil and gas can flow more easily through the fine cracks and tubules of the rock.

    To create the fractures, a fluid is pumped at a rate which generates such a high pressure in the oil and gas bearing rock that the fracture gradient or the pressure at which the rock breaks is exceeded causing them to crack or »fracture«.

    The viscosity of the fracturing fluid is a key differential factor in achieving the fracture geometry. The current practice is known as »slick-water« treatments, and additives that create a low-viscosity of the fluids pumped. HOSTAFRAC™ also has the properties that it can be applied to reduce the viscosity of the fracture fluids and has also been proven to be more effective over conventional »slick-water« polymers in reducing surface tension and improving the rate at which the fluids can be pumped having an overall benefit on the efficiency and effectiveness of the fracturing operation while applying a technology that is environmentally compatible.

    Improving Oil and Gas Productivity

    Improvements to hydraulic fracturing operations can be made in two ways. The first is to improve the efficiency of the rate at which the fracturing fluids can be pumped into the formation. The second is to ensure fast and complete removal of fracturing fluids from the reservoir when the well is brought onto production, thus improving the productivity of the well. HOSTAFRAC™ technologies are proven to modify the conditions in the formation to improve these inflow and outflow efficiencies above current market technologies, with the added value that the fractured wells are more productive, cost efficient, and sustainably developed.

  • BENTONITE

    A natural all-purpose raw material

    Bentonite is a clay material that is quite abundant on earth. It was and is still formed in nature by weathering of volcanic ashes and subsequent sedimentation. Bentonite properties are determined mainly by the amount and type of smectite-type layer silicates, for example montmorillonite.

    These minerals consist of stacks of platelet-like crystals that can fully disintegrate in water and form viscous slurries. They also exhibit a high specific surface area and cation exchange capacity, and can thus adsorb and bind quite a variety of molecules. All these properties, and many more, vary from one bentonite deposit to the other, and they can all be influenced by an appropriate treatment of the clay by various processes.

    Careful selection of the right bentonite and the right processing make it fit for a plethora of applications – from edible oil purification, foundry sand binders, and feed to drilling fluids.

  • LICOCENE

    Innovative technology for better recycling

    Licocene® has an excellent environmental and health profile, since it is completely non-toxic, unlike other adhesives such as those that are polyurethane-based. Unlike latex materials, Licocene® does not trigger any eye or skin irritation and has no allergenic potential. Furthermore, significantly less volatile gases are generated during production and in the finished product.

    Licocene® has a positive environmental and economic balance because it facilitates the raw material-efficient and energy-efficient production of homogeneous composites. The latter helps the automotive industry to meet the increasing recycling targets: Since in contrast to water-based latex materials, the adhesive itself is a thermoplastic material, carpets made from polymers bonded with Licocene® can be completely recycled. Licocene® as carrier material, fibers and adhesives is made exclusively of polypropylene, up to 100% of which can be recycled as a homogenous composite without items having to be separated beforehand.

    The advantages of Licocene®

    • Improved productivity
    • Significant savings on water and energy
    • Increase of adhesive strength
    • Colorless and odorless
    • Negligible VOC values
    • Reduction on production costs
    • Fast setting
    • Excellent wetting of fillers/filling material
    • Excellent sound insulation and vibration damping properties
    • Excellent fiber bonding
    • 100% recycling

  • PIGMENTS

    Pink going green

    Since 2014, Clariant has integrated renewable raw materials into their quinacridone , which are produced at the Frankfurt-Höchst plant. Clariant was therefore the first pigment manufacturer to offer high-performance pigments based on the renewable raw material named bio-succinic acid.

    The market launch of these based on renewable raw materials was preceded by intensive research and development activities of Clariant and Myriant, the supplier of the bio-based succinic acid. The quinacridone pigments from Clariant cover all fields of application of the pigment industry. With this innovative step, Clariant helps its customers to improve the sustainability profile of their products.

  • HEALTHCARE AND PHARMACEUTICAL PACKAGING

    Packaging as high-tech products

    In addition to its passive protection, healthcare packaging can also provide active protection – with substances for controlling moisture and oxygen. Protection is often accomplished through desiccant, oxygen scavenging and high-barrier packaging solutions, whether they are dropped-in, integrated or embedded in the product package. This could include setting specific equilibrium relative humidity level depending on the packaging application.

    »Smart packaging« is a focus area in the field of Open Innovation, where innovative ideas and approaches are continually sought from external innovators. An example of this field of application is dry capsules for medical and pharmaceutical products.

Additive

A substance added to products in small quantities to achieve certain properties or to improve a product (Clariant Business Unit Additives). VIEW ENTIRE GLOSSARY

Additive

A substance added to products in small quantities to achieve certain properties or to improve a product (Clariant Business Unit Additives). VIEW ENTIRE GLOSSARY

Pigment

Pigments are substances used for coloring; they are used in a technical manner, for example in the manufacture of dyes, varnishes, and plastics (Clariant Business Unit Pigments). VIEW ENTIRE GLOSSARY

Pigment

Pigments are substances used for coloring; they are used in a technical manner, for example in the manufacture of dyes, varnishes, and plastics (Clariant Business Unit Pigments). VIEW ENTIRE GLOSSARY