News release

HighChem Company Limited (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo: President Taka-Ushio, hereinafter HighChem) will add new lineup of grades of resin with a wide range of MFR (melt flow rate) *1 to the PLA resin (polylactic acid resin) it handles and will begin sales in early February.

PLA resin is a thermoplastic resin*2, and fluidity (melt viscosity) during dissolution is a large indicator during molding. Generally speaking, high melt viscosity lowers the fluidity and is used for extrusion molding *3, which forms films, sheets, etc. As this fluidity value becomes lower, it will be used for injecting molding *4 that are pressed into the mold to form or for fibers and non-woven fabrics.

HighChem has recently begun to handle those products in grades ranging from 4 to 30g/10min of MFR under conditions of 190°C 2.16kg, enabling the provision of resins for a wide range of applications.

List of new grades handled by HighChem (MFR under 190°C 2.16kg measurement)

MFR（g/10min）(Measure uses)
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4 ( Extrusion molding *3 )
10 ( Injection molding *4 )
18 ( Injection molding *4 , textile )
30 ( textile )

*PLA (Polylactic acid)
※1: MFR (melt flow rate): Index showing solubility viscosity and flowability of dissolved plastic
※2: Thermoplastic resin: A generic term for a resin that has the property of softening and shaping by heating and solidifying when it cools (which also has reversibility)
※3: Extrusion molding: a method of processing a shape to be determined by applying high pressure to a material placed in a pressure-resistant formwork and extruding it from a slight gap of a constant cross-sectional shape
※4: Injection molding: A method of obtaining a molded article by injecting and injecting heat-melted material into a mold and cooling and solidifying it

HighChem contracted a strategic business partnership agreement (SBAA) with Anhui Fengyuan Futerro Polylactic Acid Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of China's leading food additive manufacturer BBCA Group. And the company started up a plant capable of producing 50,000 tons of PLA resin a year in last August. The increase in grade is due to BBCA group’s range of production items, and we plan to work together to further cultivate the market.

According to the announcement by BBCA Group, in addition to the 50,000 tons/year plant, the other 350,000 tons/year plant is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year. It will make BBCA group the world's largest manufacturer of PLA supply. The BBCA Group will continue to implement measures to strengthen production capacity on a scale of millions of tons in the future to respond the shift from general-purpose plastics to biodegradable and bioplastic resins.

In order to meet the demand for biodegradable plastics expanding worldwide, HighChem will further strengthen the handling items of biodegradable materials. We will also strengthen our range of biodegradable materials, including PBAT (Polybutylene adipate terephthalate)) and other materials that have biodegradability even in the marine environment.
In addition, we will focus on developing proprietary grades and processing methods through technological alliances with compounders to contribute to the global spread of biodegradable materials.

[Inquiries from the press regarding this release]

HighChem Company limited, Administration Division PR Team: Eriko Kuroiwa
TEL: 03-5542-0580 E-mail: kuroiwa@highchem.co.jp
URL:http://www.highchem.co.jprn