Bayer Installs HNBR Reactor

Bayer AG has installed the 140-mt reactor at its new $70 million Therban hydrogenated nitrile rubber (HNBR) plant under construction at Leverkusen, Germany. The facility will produce 3000 mt/yr of the specialty elastomer when it begins operation this fall.

Bayer's Therban HNBR provides a strong mix of performance and durability in applications that require resistance to temperature extremes, fuel, oil, ozone, or abrasion. The automobile industry likes its low-temperature flexibility in hoses and belts, while oil well producers use it to pack drills.

Bayer makes Therban HNBR by using an homogenous precious-metal catalyst to hydrogenate its Perbunan NT acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber. The catalyst hydrogenates the CH=CH double bonds without touching -C=N nitrile functional group. The resulting saturated backbone provides Therban's heat resistance, while the pendant nitrile functional groups impart oil resistance similar to the original Perbunan.

Bayer operates a Therban unit in Orange, TX. In August 1999, it became the world's first HNBR facility registered to the auto industry's QS-9000 standard.

"This significant capital investment from Bayer indicates our total commitment to Therban," says Therban regional product manager Brian McCue.

By Alan S. Brown