Kraton Corporation (KRA) this week shared its plans of expanding its production capacity for SBS polymer grades.
The specialty chemicals company is a leading global producer of high-value biobased products and specialty polymers.
To remain in a leading position in sustainability in its core market, Kraton is aware of the need to reduce the carbon footprints for the environment as well as for its customers. This also includes putting efforts to increase efficiency of raw materials and utilization of materials that are bio-based. Kraton is currently focused on development of innovative novel SBS grades for bitumen modification to allow for significantly lower dosages, commented Dr. Holger Jung, Kraton’s Senior Vice President and President, Polymers. The company remained successful in lab demonstrations and is aggressively collaborating with customers to test the same in field.
Moreover, Kraton is also considering increasing the use of pitch, a bio-based pine chemical co-product manufactured in company’s pine chemical manufacturing facilities, to partially replace several bitumen uses. Those include bitumen application in roofing and paving, and it will be done to lessen the hydro-carbon-based inputs to lower company’s overall carbon footprints.
It has been illustrated practically in Sweden which highlights development in this key market. Skanska AB combined its newly developed bitumen product MJOG 16 with Kraton pitch to pave a roadway. The roadway measures approximately 18 km and is paved for the Swedish Transport Administration.
Kraton is proud to be the part of those sustainable efforts in Sweden by Skanska AB. Combining Kraton’s bio-based pitch with SBS polymer modification in asphalt will provide SBS-modified asphalt with high performance and durability to merge with a renewable raw material. This will further highlight company’s strong commitment to sustainability, Said Dr. Jung.
Since 2016, Kraton remained making capital investments in its core SBS manufacturing assets efficiently, which resulted in an increase of 20 kilotons in company’s production capabilities in Europe and North America.
