The Dow Chemical Company announced the capacity for the production of Crude Acrylic Acid (CAA) at its Böhlen facility in Germany has expanded by 25 per cent.
"The Crude Acrylic Acid capacity increase is an important milestone for Dow. We are excited to continue investing in our European production footprint and about the opportunities generated by Dow's European customer base,” said Bob Summerhayes, Global Supply Chain director for Performance Monomers.
“Overall this is a valuable addition that reinforces Dow's commitment to growth for the region and further adds to our global footprint."
One of many initiatives
The expansion represents the result of several successful initiatives carried out by the US-based chemical firm that have sought to address its need to increase CAA capacity.
The additional CAA at Böhlen will be used to increase Butyl Acrylate (BA) and Glacial Acrylic Acid (GAA) production at the site, which are used for personal care applications amongst others.
Acrylic monomers from Dow are used primarily in coatings, inks, textiles, home and personal care and energy markets.
As used in the context of the cosmetics and personal care products industry polymers of acrylic acid are generally used as thickening agents and emulsion stabilizers.
They are used in a variety of skin and hair care products, in dentifrices, and in pharmaceutical preparations. By themselves, they are fluffy white powders that readily absorb water to form gels or thick solutions that are non-toxic, stable, and resist spoilage.
Consistency and texture
The consistency and texture of cosmetics and personal care products are of critical importance to the consumer, and different agents are routinely added to these products to control the tactile qualities.
Natural plant gums or extracts have been used, but there are currently industry debates over the efficacy of these in comparison.
They can vary in quality from batch to batch, may cause allergic reactions in sensitive users, and are often subject to bacterial attack and spoilage, requiring the addition of antibacterials.