December 2024 Newsletter
MLT Analytics
An expert team focusing on ML and AI-based forecasts with solid domain knowledge in commodities and specialty products
We're celebrating the 40th edition of our monthly newsletter with major developments in bio-based polyolefins, the release of the latest edition of our UHMWPE report, and a look at aluminum recycling and composite rebar, as well as 3D printing of catalysts. Read on!
Citroniq Selects Nebraska for Second Bio-based PP Site
Citroniq?Chemicals, an?innovator?in biochemical manufacturing, has selected?Falls City's Mid-America Rail Campus?to be one of its state-of-the-art bio-based polypropylene (PP) production mega-sites.
Citroniq will transform ethanol produced from?Nebraska?corn into bio-based PP, reducing the reliance on petroleum-based production while driving additional revenue to?Nebraska's?farms and rural communities. The plant is expected to be operational in 2030 and will eventually feature two 600,000-tonnes/year PP trains. Preceding this, Citroniq plans to start up its first mega-site with 600,000 tonnes/year of feedstock-integrated bio-PP capacity around early 2028 in Nebraska City.
GFRP Composite Rebar Gets Global Boost
Talk rebar and one would normally envision rusty metal rod. Now, a glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) composite rebar is getting a global opportunity to state its case for steel substitution with the announcement of a major licensing deal.
ExxonMobil has entered into a strategic licensing agreement with Neuvokas Corporation, producer of the said product GatorBar. Under this agreement, ExxonMobil has obtained exclusive rights to sub-license Neuvokas’ proprietary manufacturing process in markets outside of North America. This collaboration marks a significant step towards expanding the global market of composite rebar within the concrete reinforcement sector.
MLT Analytics Report: The Future is Electric for UHMWPE Market
The global market for ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) is forecast for annual growth (CAGR) of 8.8%, reaching an overall volume of more than 1.5 million tonnes in 2034 according to the latest market intelligence report released by MLT Analytics entitled HMWPE/UHMWPE Powder Market Study 2025— A detailed long-term analysis.
This impressive growth is set to be primarily fueled by skyrocketing demand for battery separator film (BSF) used in lithium-ion batteries to power electric vehicles (EVs). “Despite a temporary slowdown in the uptake of EVs, several automakers scaling back their rollout plans for electric cars, renewed uncertainty pertaining to green policies in the U.S. on the back of the recent U.S. elections, and even moves by some governments to revise EV policies, the long-term outlook remains positive, for this key driver of HMWPE demand,” notes Stephen Moore, MLT Analytics CEO and co-author of the report.
There's More to Aluminum Recycling than You May Think
French firm Constellium SE has announced a major advancement in aluminum recycling for the automotive industry, by implementing Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) technology at an industrial scale. This initiative, developed in collaboration with OSR GmbH & Co. KG, a German recycling specialist, and a premium European automotive manufacturer, marks a significant step in reducing carbon emissions in the automotive supply chain by increasing the use of recycled aluminum.?
BASF 3D-Prints Catalysts
BASF has announced that it will invest in additional production capacity for its X3D? technology, a new additive manufacturing technology for catalysts based on 3D printing. The plant will produce catalysts on an industrial scale and is expected to be operational in 2026.?
The X3D technology represents a transformative leap in catalyst design and production. Catalysts produced using this technology are not only mechanically robust but also feature an open structure, which significantly reduces pressure drop across reactors and increases surface area.