Expansions: Sumitomo Seika Chemicals completes SAP pilot plant in Japan; Syensqo secures EUR150 mn supply of battery-grade PVDF to auto sector

Japan’s Sumitomo Seika Chemicals Co has announced the completion of a pilot plant for super absorbent polymers (SAPs) at its Himeji Works (Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture). The company says it is increasing production capacity for SAP, which is planned to reach 520,000 tonnes by the end of fiscal 2025, positioning it as the third largest SAP manufacturer in the world.

This plant is designed as a scaled-down model of its actual manufacturing plant, enabling medium-scale experiments under conditions similar to actual manufacturing environments.

In addition, with a view to innovations in production technologies and operational sophistication in the future, it features an expandable and flexible design to accommodate more severe operating conditions such as high temperatures and high pressures. It adds that it aims to accelerate commercialisation by fully leveraging this facility.

Meanwhile, with a view to creating a recycling framework, Sumitomo Seika aims to be recycling about 5,000 tonnes of used disposable diapers annually by 2030. Whereas the volume of disposable diapers discarded in Japan was around 2 million tonnes in fiscal 2015, this figure is projected to increase to 2.5-2.6 million tonnes by fiscal 2030. With recycling of 5,000 tonnes as an initial target, there is still a long way to go, but even so, paving the way for recycling disposable diapers, which will account for as much as 7% of general waste in fiscal 2030, will be a big step forward, it adds.

In other news, materials firm Syensqo has announced the signing of new multi-year contracts for the supply of its battery-grade Solef Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) with automotive original equipment manufacturers and battery makers.

Signed in the first quarter of 2025 and totalling more than EUR150 million in cumulative net sales, the long-term contracts highlight Syensqo's commitment to the fast evolving battery market, it adds.

The volumes will be delivered from Syensqo’s flagship plant in Tavaux, France, using its suspension PVDF technology. The site’s PVDF capacity expansion is expected to be completed by the end of 2025, with operations commencing in 2026, serving customers across multiple end markets, including the healthcare, electronics, energy, and construction sectors. 

Solef PVDF, a thermoplastic fluoropolymer, plays a crucial role in lithium-ion batteries by providing superior separator-electrode adhesion and binder performance, delivering durable, high performance, and safe batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles. 

In addition to Solef PVDF, Syensqo’s value proposition in the automotive industry extends to its portfolio of material solutions which address customers’ needs for lightweighting, higher performance and more energy efficient EVs, hybrids and internal combustion engine vehicles.

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