GC Ventures invests in UK-based start-up Interface Polymers, a developer of high-performance additives for performance plastics to enhance recyclability properties
- This investment strengthens GC’s and allnex’s position in performance polymers and plastics circularity by potential to simplify the processing and reusability of widely used mixed plastics.
- Interface Polymers is a developer of innovative chemical additives to improve the recyclability and performance properties of key polymers.
BANGKOK, May 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — GC Ventures (GCV), a subsidiary of PTT Global Chemical PLC (GC), is investing in the British company Interface Polymers Ltd. This investment opens new horizons for GC Group, enabling more efficient and sustainable plastic recycling.
Interface Polymer’s Polarfin® additives enable compatibilization between polyethylene (PE) or polypropylene (PP) with different kinds of plastics such as PET, PA, EVOH and other plastics. This makes it possible to recycle the mixed plastics widely used in food packaging chains across the world, solving one of the biggest problems in the recycling process today.
The unique Polarfin® additive technology developed by Interface Polymers, added to PP and PE at very low rates, makes them more recyclable, easier to work with and enables strong surface adhesion to plastics, paints and general adhesives.
“Today, sustainability is key to business operations. We are committed to using innovative solutions to make our products environmentally friendly. Plastic is a crucial component in various daily life equipment. Applying the circular economy principle to the closed-loop plastic waste management, recycling, and upcycling is necessary. This includes studying new innovations and accessing up-to-date technologies to help improve the use of plastic to better meet people’s needs.” says Kamel Ramdani, Senior Vice President, Product Innovation and Innovation Management of GC.
Ross Baglin, CEO of Interface Polymers, said: “We are delighted to have GCV/allnex as investors and development partners respectively, and we look forward to making polymers the best environmental solution for so many human needs. We all know that we cannot go on consuming earth’s resources and consigning the results to history. We need a materials revolution as well as an energy revolution: making things reparable, recyclable, perhaps even everlasting. Polymers are a unique material made from the earth’s bounty and extraordinary human ingenuity. They are too good to waste. Polarfin® can help make polymers work for us, generation after generation”.
In addition to the investment by GCV, the GC subsidiary company allnex has agreed to an extensive development partnership with Interface Polymers with the aim of using its technology to develop innovative resins to enable recyclable solutions for the packaging industry. “IPL technology and vision are opening a new future for plastics and packaging in a world where circularity has become central to all innovation efforts.” says Benoit De Becker, Senior VP Strategic Innovation & Sustainability of allnex.
About GC Ventures
GC Ventures is a wholly owned subsidiary by PTT Global Chemical Public Company Limited (GC). We discover breakthrough innovations to solve global challenges and to meet the needs of businesses and lifestyles of today and tomorrow. We are focusing on strategic investments and collaborations with related startups and also investing in venture capital funds around the world to co-create solutions and enhance their readiness to scale in order to accelerate growth in innovations and businesses for GC’s sustainable growth. GC Ventures has offices in Bangkok, Thailand and Massachusetts, USA.
https://www.pttgcgroup.com/en/products-and-innovations/gc-ventures
About allnex
allnex is a leading producer of industrial coating resins and additives for industrial, protective, automotive, architectural and special purpose coatings and inks. With manufacturing facilities and R&D centers located around the world, the allnex group offers access to a huge global network of innovation and provides responsive, local support to our customers, helping them to quickly bring advanced coating solutions to market. Formed in 2016 by the merger of two leading resin companies, we’ve recently further strengthened our business by becoming part of the major international player PTT Global Chemical.
About Interface Polymers
Interface Polymers was established in 2016 to commercialise inventions made in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Warwick in Coventry (UK). A core competency of this company is the use of its Polarfin® di-block technology to make polyolefins structurally compatible with other materials. The di-block copolymers combine polyethylene or polypropylene with dissimilar polymers to improve their compatibility with metals, ceramics, and other plastics. This allows a step change in recycling of mixed plastics, the adhesion of paints, inks and adhesives to plastic surfaces, and the dispersion of materials within moulded plastics. IPL has now raised $8M in Series A funding as it looks forward to a commercial development plant start-up at year end.
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