MUTTENZ, Switzerland – Specialty chemicals company Clariant is a finalist in the German business innovation award, Innovationspreis der Deutschen Wirtschaft 2015, in the Large Company category. Clariant’s Licocene^® polyolefin-based waxes are recognized for advancing sustainability in textiles, plastics and coatings manufacturing and improving the environmental profile of a wide range of applications.

Licocene waxes give manufacturers the option of using fewer ingredients, reducing manufacturing steps and using less resource-intensive production processes. For example in textiles, close cooperation between Clariant and German coatings and laminate specialist LACOM GmbH has succeeded in changing energy-intensive, water-based textile coating technology to a less energy-consuming process of hot melt coating using very low amounts of Licocene additives. There are also environmental benefits for final products, such as improving the recyclability of textiles or reducing product weight.

Licocene's ability to support more sustainable processing is particularly valued in energy-intensive sectors, such as technical textiles for mattresses, furniture and carpets for automotive and aerospace interiors. They are also used in the manufacture of masterbatches and engineering plastics, as well as in industrial coatings, and in printing inks and adhesives for packaging applications.

The award jury of leading science and business representatives also acknowledged Licocene for promoting homegrown R&D and technical processing within Germany. The product’s development involved collaboration between Clariant’s researchers in Höchst and researchers at the University of Hamburg, leading to the piloting and building of a full-scale production unit in Germany. Clariant continues to work closely with its customers both inside and outside of Germany to use Licocene to bring sustainability advances to market segments. As of 2016, the company will have achieved a 50% increase in its production capacity for Licocene to support the increasing interest in the product and its extensive application possibilities.