Dow doubles down on safety, circularity at Silicone Expo

Detroit — The greater the vertical integration, the greater the responsibility—an axiom that is especially true for Dow Inc. as it continues its sustainability efforts.

"With sustainability, it always matters how you are thinking about the product," said Ana Carolina Felix, keynote speaker Oct. 5 at Silicone Expo USA in Detroit. "Doing so enables sustainability in the use of the product up and down the supply chain. This is why it is so complex and so important."

Silicone Expo USA — along with its companion gathering at Huntington Place, the Tape and Functional Film Expo — drew hundreds of exhibitors and industry experts to the Motor City Oct. 4-5.

Felix is Americas sustainability director for the Midland, Mich.-based Dow Consumer Solutions, responsible for managing the segment's reduction in Scope 1-3 emissions and improving end-product circularity.

"Sustainability is not something new for Dow," she said. "We have had defined targets since 1995, tracking our footprints and handprints (the impact material generates on customers).

"We take a very holisitic approach in the communities where we operate."

Sustainability goals are evolving at Dow, Felix said, with net zero goals in all three Scopes by 2050.

Specifically in Scopes 1 and 2, Dow Consumer Solutions achieved a 5-percent CO2 reduction between 2015 and 2019 and is eying another 50-percent reduction by 2030.

Between 2030 and 2040, another 25-percent reduction is expected in Scopes 1 and 2 (the energy needed for operation, and the emissions produced during the manufacturing process, respectively).

The path to net zero in Scope 3—the reduction roadmap for suppliers—is slightly different for Dow.

However by 2050, the $57 billion, 38,000-person company expects to reach net zero emissions in Scopes 1-3.

"There is much more structure now to what we are doing as we see growth in the different disclosure-types of platforms," said Felix, who began with Dow 12 years ago in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

In a sense, vertical integration can be invaluable in achieving sustainability goals, allowing multi-nationals to control, capture and either return or recycle their products and reduce their emissions.

But vertical integration also means a longer, in-house supply chain, all of which that individual company must manage.

That is where the notion of great responsibility steps in.

"There are different ways of looking at it, especially as regulatory and voluntary markets make net-zero commitments," Felix said. "About 60 to 70 percent of Fortune 500 companies have climate-related targets.

"But it is also important to note that while having future targets is critical, there are 'right now' situations for climate goals.

"Our dedication to the principles of the circular economy is complemented by our unmatched expertise in chemistry, toxicology, product stewardship and R&D capabilities."

Many of the "right now" climate goals, according to Felix, focus on Dow Consumer Solutions' unique vertical integration with its silicone production.

"We are developing scalable and trusted low-carbon and circular solutions for silicones, specifically," Felix said. "Silicone uses a lot of energy."

Still, Dow touts that its silicone monomer production—polydimethylsiloxane, or PDMS—produces between 7 and 10 percent less CO2 than industry averages.

From the siloxane production sites, the monomer goes to the silicone finishing sites.

In total, Dow supplies silicone to every major region of the world—in both North and South America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.

"About 55 percent of our purchased electricity comes from renewable energies, including hydropower, wind and solar," Felix said. "All of this means we have access to a lower-carbon source of feedstocks."

Dow also is reducing its carbon footprint in silicon metal production further upstream, part of its Scope 1 and 2 carbon footprints.

Using more than 90 percent renewable energy to power its silicon metal refineries, Dow institutes clean (audited) charcoal and renewable wood chips as feedstocks to heat the basic quartz material mined in Brazil.

Ultimately, the refined, chemical-grade silicon metal then is used in production of PDMS.

"That amounts to a carbon footprint that is twice as low as other silicon refineries, using renewable energy and responsibly sourced bio-based reductants," Felix said.

The final piece to Dow's sustainability puzzle is circularity.

"We want to think about the overall cycle of the product," Felix said, adding that Dow is looking to put silicone material back into the stream of production, Felix said.

"We have been doing this for a long time with silicones," she said. "We are trying to find new ways of generating value from what normally would be a waste."

Dow has recycled silicones in one form or another since 2005, Felix said, using thermal treatment, mechanical recycling and energy recovery methods to send both the silicon metal and PDMS back into the production stream.

Felix also touted a major partnership with Bridgestone in establishing "the world's first recyclable silicone self-sealing tire."

As the automotive industry trends toward lightweighting and carbon neutrality, the collaboration has produced an anti-puncture tire that can maintain gas tightness with a thin layer of silicone sealant.

"This benefits the overall carbon footprint of the car, but also is a component of recycling the tires," Felix said. "The concept is to separate the silicone from the tire and recycle it."

According to Felix, the tire offers enhanced productivity with a faster application of the sealant at room temperature, with no tire pre-cleaning required.

The product also offers extended durability, with consistent tire temperature across a broad range.

"The safety of our materials is a big commitment that Dow has," Felix said. "We are the only silicone supplier that has a dedicated health and environmental research facility where we can study the toxicology and profiles of silicon materials."