Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is ubiquitous in modern society, with annual production over 35 million tons. It is produced through the polymerization of vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), most often the addition of an organic peroxide initiator. And that makes AkzoNobel, the world's largest producer of organic peroxides, a vital player in the PVC industry.
The basic technology for the production of suspension PVC (S-PVC) has changed very little over the years. Basically, the speed of the process is determined by decomposition rate of the initiator, with the process speed being limited by the cooling capacity of the reactor. But there was an inherent problem with this "classical" production technology because, once the initiator has been introduced into the reactor, there was very little control over the process or the quality of the product.
Breakthrough CiD technology
Following many years of research and development, we have introduced a patented technology which allows for controlling the reaction speed of the PVC production process by regulating the rate of initiator dosing; continuous initiator dosing (CiD).
Trigonox® 187
One of the keys to this breakthrough technology is the choice of a very fast peroxide - diisobutyryl peroxide, marketed under the AkzoNobel brand name of Trigonox 187. Due to its high rate of decomposition the polymerization reaction starts almost immediately. Using Trigonox 187, the reactor can be controlled to run at maximum cooling capacity because the dosing rate determines the amount of polymerization heat generated.
Enhanced reactor output
Control, clearly, is a great advantage, as is higher quality PVC, but the most important gain achieved with CiD is in accelerated reaction time. CiD enhances productivity with 20 to 30 percent which translates into significant savings in capital investments for producers since they only have to invest in AkzoNobel's dosing system onto existing equipment.
Improved safety and product quality
Not only does CiD reduce the costs of capital per kilogram S-PVC, it also helps the PVC production process become much safer. In addition, the PVC resin produced is whiter than found with classically produced PVC.
The new revolutionary CiD technology has already been implemented by a number of PVC producers such as, for example, Vinnolit GmbH & Co. - Germany, Ercros SA - Spain and JSC Kaustik - Russia.
Contact us to learn more about continuous initiator dosing.