March 9, 2010
Global expansion of Nd-BR (neodymium butadiene rubber) is planned by Lanxess with a Eur 20 million investment at three sites. It is to add 50,000 tonnes capacity in total at Dormagen in Germany, Orange in the USA and Cabo in Brazil. The extra capacities will go on stream between the first quarter of 2011 and first quarter of 2012.
     Lanxess expects global demand for Nd-BR to increase by close to 10 per cent annually over the next few years driven by increasing demand for lower rolling resistance tyres and for tyres generally as car ownership grows – especially in Asia. The company says that without its planned capacity expansion there would be a worldwide shortage of this type of rubber by 2014.
     The capacity expansions will be achieved through production streamlining. At the same time, Lanxess will harmonise production processes and technology at all its high-performance rubber plants worldwide. The expansions will also lead to an indirect increase in solution styrene butadiene rubber (SSBR) capacity at the company’s site in Port Jérôme, France and the introduction of SSBR production at Orange. SSBR is also used in the tread mix for high-performance tyres to reduce rolling resistance.

 In a separate move Lanxess is considering manufacturing ESBR-BMB (emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber black masterbatch) at its Triunfo or Caxias sites in Brazil. The material would be primarily for tyre retreading and starting production in Brazil would augment the company's CoBR-BMB production capacities in Orange, Texas, USA.
     Lanxess says that in addition to the established markets in America and Europe and in the Middle East and Africa, it sees particularly good growth potential in China and India, where the retread sector has not yet been able to keep pace with the increase in demand for tyres.
     Black masterbatch products are easier to process during compounding since there is no longer any need for the compounder to mix ESBR with carbon black and oil. In addition, wet mixing during BMB manufacture leads to better dispersion of the filler particles, which can have a positive effect on the properties of the end product, adds Lanxess.