“Nouryon is seeing a marked increase in demand for expandable microspheres, which is being driven, in part, by global sustainability trends,” said Sobers Sethi, senior vice president, emerging markets and China. “Relocating Expancel production to our Ningbo facility will help us to meet this demand through the site’s operational excellence and addition of critical resources. That, in turn, will help us to accelerate our growth in China.”

Expancel expandable microspheres are used as a lightweight filler and blowing agent to make customers’ end products lighter, incorporate high-performing insulation properties or better reflect light to reduce energy consumption, cost and environmental impact. For example, said Nouryon, using cool roof coatings with high solar-reflecting properties reduces the need for air conditioning as they can reduce a building’s external surface temperature by as much as 15°C.

The Ningbo facility comprises six plants that produce chelating agents, organic peroxides and surfactants, and will complement Nouryon’s existing Expancel sites in Sweden, the US and Brazil.

Last August, the French firm announced that it had selected Green Bay in Wisconsin, USA, as the site for an Expancel expansion, serving fast-growing demand throughout the Americas as well as other parts of the world. Initial production was due online last October, with further increases planned over the next several years.

Author: Elaine Burridge, Freelance Journalist