Emerald Kalama Chemical Announces Capacity Expansion
CUYAHOGA FALLS, OH – Emerald Kalama Chemical, a division of Emerald Performance Materials, has begun construction of a 60-percent capacity expansion for K-FLEX® non-phthalate plasticizers at its Kalama, WA, facility. The additional reactor capacity is scheduled to be commissioned in January 2013. This is the company’s second capacity expansion for the K-FLEX product line at its Washington facility in the past two years. Earlier this year, the company also announced construction of a new K-FLEX manufacturing site that is underway in the Netherlands.
K-FLEX plasticizers and coalescents are used in adhesives, PVC compounds, coatings and other latex polymer applications. In these applications, K-FLEX products are known for enhancing film formation, adhesion, processing characteristics and improving the resistance of the end-product to oil, grease and water. Other benefits include improved scrub resistance, gloss retention in coatings, stain resistance and toughened wear layers in plastisols when compared with other materials.