VANCOUVER, WA — Emerald Performance Materials is separating its Polymer Additives and Nitriles groups, merging the businesses with its Emerald Kalama Chemical and CVC Thermoset Specialties groups, respectively. The Polymer Additives business will now be known as Antioxidants and Accelerators (AOA).

“AOA and Nitriles both have a tenured history in the markets they serve, with well-known legacy brands, extensive technical expertise and North American operations in Akron, Ohio, and Henry, Illinois. Separating these businesses will enable us to develop appropriate strategies for each and to support continued growth and better serve our customers,” said Scott Wolff, Emerald Performance Materials Chairman and a Managing Director with American Securities, the private equity firm that owns Emerald.

Emerald appointed Wendy Herbst as General Manager to lead the AOA business. In this role, she will be focused on optimizing and expanding the business globally. Herbst has 15 years of experience in strategic, marketing and development roles in the industrial and specialty chemicals industry. She joined Emerald in 2014 as Marketing Director for the Kalama group’s K-FLEX^® plasticizers and coalescents business and has previously held roles with Arizona Chemical, Eastman and The Sherwin-Williams Co.

Emerald’s AOA business is a leading North American producer of polymer additives, with operations in Akron and Henry. Its portfolio includes legacy product lines dating back to Emerald predecessor BF Goodrich. Good-Rite^® antioxidants, stabilizers and intermediates and Cure-Rite^® accelerators stabilize and protect rubber from wear, fading and degradation and also enhance performance for added value in rubber, adhesives, plastics, lubricants, paper, coatings, leather and other applications.

The Nitriles business also has roots within BF Goodrich and is the sole U.S. producer of specialty nitrile latexes. Nychem^® latex emulsions are based on butadiene, acrylonitrile and styrene chemistries and are valued for their ability to provide essential characteristics and superior performance benefits for a wide range of applications. Specifically, they are known for their resistance to grease, oils and solvents, abrasion and caustic resistance, elasticity, resilience and more.

“When Emerald was formed, the Nitriles business and Reactive Liquid Polymers business that is now part of CVC were one entity, so bringing them together again as part of the CVC portfolio was a logical step. These businesses benefit from a shared manufacturing site in Akron and overlapping technologies and resources, making them a natural and synergistic fit poised for parallel growth,” said Thomas Holleran, President, CVC Thermoset Specialties.

Emerald previously announced it was exploring the sale of the former Polymer Additives and Nitriles groups. Emerald’s Board of Directors ultimately determined that retaining the businesses and aligning them with Emerald’s other groups provided the highest value for the organization.