Sabic spreads sustainability across multiple product lines

Sabic is moving ahead with sustainability efforts across multiple product lines.

Executives Sami Al-Osaimi and Bob Maughon reviewed Sabic's work with sustainable and circular solutions at an Oct. 19 press event at K 2022. Al-Osaimi is acting vice president of petrochemicals for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia-based Sabic. Maughon is the firm's executive vice president of sustainability, technology and innovation.

"We are working hard to make these changes real," Al-Osaimi said. "We're focused on circularity and also on electrification for vehicles."

Sustainable applications being touted by Sabic include light fixtures made from Lexan-brand polycarbonate and hygiene products made from recycled content, as well as the Microsoft mouse made with 20 percent ocean plastic.

In EVs, Sabic materials are being used in battery packs, which Al-Osaimi described as "the heart of the vehicle." Sabic's Bluehero ecosystem program is supporting a shift to more sustainable electric power. The program already has materials in use in a battery pack weighing 40 percent less than steel in a Honda vehicle.

"Today is the right time for sustainability because of the number of challenges that are facing us," Maughon said. "We want to meet needs without sacrificing quality of life for future generations."

Sabic is addressing end-of-life challenges for plastic products, as well as finding ways to address climate change. "It's important to tackle climate change in a holistic way," Maughon said.

He added that circular chemistry "has to deliver with nothing left in the environment. … Everything has to be brought into a circular loop."

Sabic's advanced recycling plant in Geleen, Netherlands, will be mechanically complete in the first quarter of 2023, with commercial amounts available to customers in the second quarter. The firm also is working on making its plant in Cartagena, Spain, fully renewable.

Supply chain issues have been met by Sabic, Al-Osaimi said, and resin demand in 2022 was good in the first half before slowing down in the second half because of inflation and other factors. He added that he's optimistic about demand for 2023.

"There could be challenges early in the year, but the market will balance itself as it goes along," Al-Osaimi said. "Supply chain issues should be eased by the middle of next year."

• Flexible packaging with Mars for Kind healthy snack bar wrappers. The wrappers are made from flexible biaxially oriented polypropylene film with Sabic PP for food contact. The sustainable monomaterial packaging solution allows end-of-life recycling in existing collection and conversion operations without compromising high-speed processing or product quality.

• In collaboration with Covestro, Sabic has developed a fully recyclable standup pouch made with Sabic biaxially oriented polyethylene material and using Covestro's heat-resistant coating resin technology. This transparent coating, currently in trial phase, offers a broader sealing temperature window when processing on form fill and seal lines for flexible packaging. It prevents film shrinkage and film sticking to heat seal bars during FFS.

• A high-voltage electro-voltaic connector that leverages the electrical properties of Sabic's Valox-brand polybutylene terephthalate resin and the polymer's customized colorability, including signal orange, an essential requirement in that market segment.

• Opaque Lexan Cliniwall sheet from Sabic's Functional Forms business for hygienic wall claddings in health care facilities. The durable sheet materials offers high fire safety, impact strength and scratch resistance as well as excellent resistance to hospital cleaners and disinfectants.

• Mattel's new Mega and Matchbox toys using certified renewable PP. Mega Bloks Green Town is the first toy line available at mass retail to be certified carbon-neutral.

• Mysoda's sparkling water machine made with UPM Formi EcoAce biocomposite contains certified wood and certified renewable PP polymer from Sabic's Trucircle portfolio.

Sabic is a global supplier of commodity and engineering resins that employs 31,000 with U.S. headquarters in Houston. In 2021, Sabic posted sales of almost $47 billion.