And that’s not all
Semiconductors, solar panels, polyethylene and more
Kynar® products are a material of choice for high-stakes applications such as in semiconductor manufacturing, which requires the ability to move a liquid without affecting its purity, or in the chemical and food industries when transporting aggressive fluids. Kynar® products are also used as a protective film for the back of solar panels and as an additive for the production of polyethylene, for which it improves implementation and recyclability.
“Sales of Kynar® PVDF have seen very steady growth, from 6 to 7% per year. After the rapid growth in Li-ion batteries, all application markets are contributing to this positive trend, which was not affected by the health crisis in 2020.”
David Silagy,
Europe General Manager & Global Fluoropolymers Product Manager
An investment strategy focused on sustainable innovation
Arkema is the world leader in PVDF and has production facilities on the three continents where the market for Kynar® products is growing, with plants in Pierre-Bénite (France), Calvert City (U.S.) and Changshu (China). “The Group has been rolling out an ambitious growth policy for ten years, supported by a consistent R&D effort for all key PVDF markets and a willingness to support our customers wherever they are,” says David Silagy, Kynar® Europe General Manager & Global Fluoropolymers Product Manager. As a result, Arkema’s industrial capacity is growing. “We are conducting a very proactive investment program. Over the past ten years, this has resulted in an increase in our capacity every 18 months on average. The latest one took place at the end of 2020 with the start-up of a new line in Changshu, which has increased our capacity to serve the electric battery market by 25%. In early 2021, we announced a further increase in capacity for Kynar® fluoropolymers at Changshu, which is expected to start up before the end of 2022.”
