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To the Editor: In 'Rate-Base Cleansings: Rolling Over Ratepayers' (November 2005, p.58), Michael Majoros urges state public utility commissions to recognize a refundable regulatory liability for past charges to ratepayers [...]

The Internet is becoming increasingly important as a business tool and most industries, including plastics, find it essential for obtaining information and carrying out business. Research shows that around 73% of people employed in the plastics sector can access the Internet, set to rise to some 90% by end-2000. The largest category of plastics-related sites on the Internet is the general promotional site, placed online by producers, equipment manufacturers, processors and distributors. Other site categories include information providers and so-called community-builders which offer areas such as discussion forums and chat rooms.

Several plastics companies have developed in-mould decorating for presenting vehicle safety and system information in both daylight and at night. Inmould Technology is developing in-mould decorating of automotive interior parts and it is working with Bayer which has interests in PC and PBT film. Graphics are screen-printed onto a polycarbonate, PC/PBT or similar film, which is then formed into a three dimensional shape and placed in the mould. Printed graphics are effectively sandwiched between the film and the component.

The PVC profiles market was seeing strong growth in Europe until 1995, particularly in window applications, but the fall in investment in building and construction caused demand to fall. However 40% of all windows in 1995 were made of PVC and the market for replacement windows has remained fairly strong. The UK and Germany are the largest markets for PVC window profiles and the European PVC market is expected to return to growth as economies improve. There are also concerns about the use of PVC from environmental groups and some companies in the industry have responded by recycling window profiles after their natural life has finished.

Dow Chemical is hoping Covelle, a polyolefin film manufactured using metallocene technology, will find uses in such medical applications as blood bags and packaging.

Innovations within the polyamide industry are discussed, with examples of new technologies and end-uses.

In the past the electronics industry has used inorganic chemicals for a large number of its products, but now the larger electronics companies are turning to polymers particularly for light-emitting diodes. The benefits of polymers include the ease of manufacture using light weight materials, high brightness, and lower financial and environmental costs.

Blatchford uses a range of plastics technologies to ensure optimum performance and cost effectiveness for its artificial legs. The company has two systems for making carbon fibre shins. The sockets attaching the limb to patient are thermoformed using a drape thermoforming method, while feet are produced in shoe sole-type polyurethane and have a structural element linking them to the leg.

The global engineering compound market relies on the production of over 4.5 million tones of polymer compounds. There are about 1,200 compounders throughout the world, with 200 in the US. Dow Plastics produces 60,000 tonnes of compounded polymers in its several European subsidiaries, with the company focusing on the changing needs of consumers throughout the industry. The aim is to produce polymers which are cheap but meet technical and consumer requirements.

The demand for anti-microbial and biocide additives in plastics is established in the US and Japan, and growing in Europe. The most widely-used anti-microbial is the highly-effective oxybisphenoxarsine, but manufacturers cannot use this in food-related applications as it contains arsenic. Trichlorophenoxy phenol, also known as triclosan, is suitable for these applications but is not effective against fungi. Major players in the triclosan market include Microban International and Clariant. Zeneca Biocides has launched a new anti-microbial range based on N-butyl BIT.

German chemical giant BASF split its styrenics and engineering plastics operations into two separate divisions in May 1997, with both units focusing on developing existing products. The engineering plastics division is researching improved grades of polyamides and PBT, while the development of new plastic grades for use in car body panels is being carried out in conjunction with GE Plastics. The styrene unit is developing new grades of styrene copolymers and polystyrene and is experimenting with a sheet extrusion grade of its Styroflex styrene/butadiene copolymer.

German engineering plastics company Ticona was spun-off from parent Hoechst in June 1997. The company's main product is acetal (POM), representing around half of its sales, with polyester (PBT/PEM) being developed as a second line. Ticona also claims around one third of the PPS market, with particular growth in under-the-bonnet automotive applications. The company aims to be the leading producer in all the sectors in which it operates. President Bernd Sassenrath is seeking new partners in engineering plastics to expand the company's portfolio.

Plastics manufacturer Fina Chemicals' has developed a new metallocene catalysed polyethylene for the blown film sector. The product, Finacene PE, is undergoing tests at its facilities in Antwerp, Belgium. It will probably be combined with other products to reduce costs, according to Fina Chemicals representatives. The organisation is also researching other product mixtures to take advantage of mechanical and optical properties not already available in pure metallocene products.

Dutch custom injection moulder company Tradimex Precision Products (TPP) Axxicon started to specialise in the production of gear wheels, helixes and pulleys when it became part of mould-maker Axxicon in 1990. The Axxicon group bought TPP to gather mould making expertise for future business operations. TPP makes around one quarter of group turnover and is expected to grow by between 15-20% per annum until the year 2000.

BP Chemicals Speciality Polymers Group introduced its Ketonex aliphatic polyketones at the New Plastics '96 conference, for use in barrier packaging applications. Ketonex could replace the expensive EVOH in coextruded multilayer structures. There are also new applications for Barex resins in packaging fruit juices, as tests have shown than Barex resins can reduce oxygen transmission by around 90%.

ABB and Eutech will see mutual benefits from the former's acquisition of the latter for an undisclosed amount. The deal will enable Eutech to use ABB's worldwide network for expansion, and will equally expand ABB's chemicals operations.

Germany's Degussa expects its acquisition of UK chemical company Laporte PLC to become final in the first quarter of 2001. Laporte is one of many UK companies to be acquired by a foreign firm recently. Laporte specializes in contract fine chemicals development and production for pharmaceutical companies.

The strength and durability of carbon fibre makes it an ideal material to use in the reinforcement of bridges.

Developments in the agricultural film industry have produced products which stabilize the amount of ultra violet rays permeating the skin of plastic film, reducing exposure to harmful sunlight.

European car makers are increasingly using natural fibres, such as sisal and flax, to reinforce plastic car parts. The development is fuelled by environmental concerns and the potential cost savings. DaimlerChrysler is one company working with natural fibres and is using flax reinforced polypropylene for the underbody panelling of its supermini, the Mercedes A class.

Dow Plastics is announcing the first applications for its Questra syndiotactic polystyrene. The company is focusing on the electronics/electrical and automotive under-the-bonnet sectors, presenting Questra as suitable for high tolerance applications in which there is a need for dimensional stability, heat resistance, water and chemical resistance and lower specific gravity. There are several applications for Questra in the automotive sector, including water pump impellers where chemical and thermal stability make it possible to deal with water mixed with ethylene glycol at very high temperatures.

BASF and Merck are developing special iridescent pigments for use in plastics products. The pigments, originally developed for paints, exhibit a physical effect known as goniochromicity, involving a certain combination of light reflection, absorbance and interference. The powder pigments are based on metal oxide-coated platelets which produce the iridescent effect when viewed from different angles. Tests show that the effects are best achieved in transparent plastics, including blown LDPE film and calendered PVC film.

Tetra Pak has supplied Swiss beverage manufacturer and bottler Henniez with a linear aseptic PET blow-moulding and bottling system for its Sources Minerales Henniez XIII Cantons plant. Limited space at this facility dictated that the line was developed as a modular concept. In addition, the DBX-6 six-cavity blow moulding machine has a small footprint. The aseptic PET filler has an in-built sterile chamber, and clean room conditions are not required.

The PE100 pipe material market is expected to increase to 104,000 tonnes in 1998, from 80,000 tonnes in 1997. Pipe material manufacturer Fina has developed a bimodal hexene copolymer which is resistant to cracking and crack growth. The new plastic is called Finathene XS10 and consists of a combination of hexene comonomer and biomadal polymerisation. Fina plans to produce up to 40,000 tonnes each year, after production starts at it plant in Antwerp in May 1998.

A plastic manhole has been developed by Dutch-based plastics firm Wavin, which is the largest European manufacturer of plastic piping. The 3-section manhole is 3 metres high and 1 metre wide, with walls 15 mm thick. It is made of recycled HDPE which has been coloured black. The manhole costs less to make and install than a traditional concrete hole because it is lighter and easier to transport. Little follow-up maintenance is needed as the manhole is completely rust free and water tight.

The compounding company ICI Americas Inc. LNP Engineering Plastics has produced compounds for the plastics industry since 1948. The company is a subsidiary of Japanese concern Kawasaki Steel. LNP supplies a range of engineering plastics including PBT, POM and polycarbonate and can produce up to 70,000 tonnes in total per year globally. It also produces high temperature plastics including PPS and PEI.

Global consumption of polyurethane (PU) is forecast to reach around 9 million t/y by 1999/2000, against some 7 million t/y in 1996. Growth is being driven by demand, particularly for automotive applications, in Latin America and the Asia Pacific region. Dow and Bayer are among the leading PU producers. Dow estimates its share of the market to be 1.6 million t, with Dow also producing over 1 million t/y.

Dow Plastics is a major producer of thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU) and is backing its products with a Netherlands-based dedicated sales and technical group. The company plans to double TPU production by end-1998 at its La Porte, TX, facility, which has a current capacity of 23,000 t/y. The global TPU market is set to amount to 230,000 t/y by 2000 and is forecast to grow by more than 10%/y.

Visqueens Films, a unit of PE film producer British Polythene Industries, has developed two new greenhouse films with beneficial properties, both of which will be available during 1998. Visqueen's three-layer extruded Luminance THB film allows through plenty of visible light for photosynthesis, but blocks large amounts of IR radiation to reduce unwanted heat. The film is being field tested in France and Spain. The second film, initially being offered to strawberry growers, blocks UV light to combat the fungal disease botrytis.

German pharmaceutical and chemical company Bayer AG achieved record earnings in 1996, with good growth in the thermoplastics division. Despite Germany's high wage bills and sluggish economy, Bayer expects the future of its German plants to be secure. The company plans to expand its presence in Asia's styrenics and polycarbonate markets and hopes to become a cost leader in styrenics through investment in technology. Some DM125 million is spent on research each year, split almost equally between process and product development.

Some of Europe's leading flame-retardant producers are seeking new products that are not based on bromine. Halogen-containing retardants can form acidic and corrosive run-off following extinguishment of the fire. German chemical company Bayer is developing a phosphate-based, PC/ABS system specifically for the Asian market, where flame-retardant computer housings still contain bromine. Other companies seeking halogen-free flame retardants include DuPont, BASF, GE Plastics and Clariant.

Chemical company DuPont has developed its Petretec polyester regeneration process, based on methanolysis, for recycling polyethylene teraphthalate (PET). The new system's main advantage over older reprocessing technology is the low contaminant levels in the recycled material, making it suitable for reuse in high-quality applications. DuPont has invested around $12 million in converting an existing processing plant in Wilmington, NC, to the new technology, although it only has the capacity to recycle its own PET waste. It is planned to begin licensing the technology in 1998.

Belgium's Prayon-Rupel is set to enter the ultramarine blue pigment market and is installing a $30 million, 3,500 t/y plant at its Belgian facility. The company has developed a new continuous process to make the pigment, with the by-product, sulphur dioxide, available for use in Prayon's sulphuric acid production. Traditionally, a batch process is used to make ultramarine pigment, but it is thought that the new continuous process will allow for more consistency. Prayon has been running a pilot plant since 1994 and is commissioning the commercial-scale plant at its Engis, Belgium site.

Polimeri Europa, an Enichem and Union Carbide joint venture, expects to be producing around 1.6 million tonnes a year of polyethylene, with 400,0000 tonnes of new capacity coming on stream at its new plant in Brindisi, Italy. The company is also committed to producing PE at at low operating and investment cost by restructuring obsolete high-cost production facilities. The new plant will use the widely licensed Unipol technology from Union Carbide and will be able to produce Super-hexene LLDPE copolymers for film applications.

Cannon's acquisition of Sandretto, an injection moulding machine manufacturer, has created Italy's largest industrial manufacturing company. Cannon produces machine and plant for polyurethane processing and it also supplies plants for composites, thermoforming, pumps, industrial electronics and moulds. Cannon communications manager Max Taverna has said that Cannon is keen to continue the Sandretto name, with Sandretto operating as an autonomous subsidiary.

Mitsui Petrochemical Industries of Japan has developed a method to give easy processing of metallocene LLDPE (mLLDPE) grades, using gas phase bi-modal polymerisation, by introducing long-chain branching. The company is aiming to open a production plant in 1998. Exxon has also introduced metallocene resins produced using the Exxpol metallocene catalyst, giving them a similar processibility to a typical LLDPE, but with improved toughness.

Dow Plastics is introducing a range of metallocene-catalyzed syndiotactic polystyrene (SPS) known as SPS crystalline polymers, named Questra. The new materials are described as high performance engineering resins and are made from aromatic monomers. The company is planning to build a commercial Questra plant, scheduled to become operational in early 1999. The SPS has a more regular syndiotactic arrangement than normal polystyrene and it has good resistance to chemicals, water and steam, suitable for use in injection-moulded electrical and electronic parts.

Amoco has developed Amosorb, a polymer-based oxygen scavenger which can be incorporated into packaging structures to absorb oxygen already present and any that permeates into the packaging over time. Amoco, Cadillac Products and the US army have worked together to produce a laminated pouch containing Amosorb, and bread kept in the pouch is said to have a shelf-life of three years. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation in Australia has developed an oxygen scavenging compound, Zero2, which can be incorporated into the backbone of polymer packaging.