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Special ChemSpec Edition

Message from the CEO

April is a very exciting month for Chemical Information Services! We are in the process of preparing for two international ChemSpec conferences. We will be exhibiting at both Chemspec India in Mumbai April 26-27, 2012 (Stand A-10) and at Chemspec USA in Philadelphia May 8-9, 2012 (Stand G-25). Please stop by to meet the CIS team attending (Erica, Justin, Erin) and to take advantage of our tutorials and promotional specials.

We are continuing to invest in the company and our products each quarter and I am pleased to announce that we have increased the size of our research team and have put together an exciting list of enhancements for not only the DWCP, but also Pathfinder, the WCMD and the WBDU. Additionally, we are continuing to work on the look and functionality of our website and subscriber portal. We hope that you like it!

I am pleased to announce that we’re partnering with ChemSpec to bring SourceFinder to ChemSpec exhibitions worldwide. SourceFinder is comparable to a “mini-version” of DWCP, as it helps one locate products and producers present at the conference. SourceFinder will be available to all ChemSpec registrants two weeks prior to the show and two weeks after the show and can be accessed via our website. And for the first time, designated SourceFinder kiosks will be present at the exhibit hall, located near the entrance for easy navigation.

April is also the first month that CIS is incorporating business intelligence content from The Hackett Group into our multimedia platform. We hope that you will find their insights and perspectives on the world of procurement intriguing and informative. In addition, we will be announcing a series of webinars with The Hackett Group, scheduled to begin in the third and fourth quarters of this

year. More information will follow in next month’s newsletter.

Lastly, we are greatly anticipating a April 16th launch date for our Market Maker e-sourcing tool, a new value-added capability that will be available to DWCP subscribers. The new CIS MarketMaker e-Sourcing tool will support the work flow of the procurement process and enable you to seamlessly search chemical producers, initiate requests for information, prepare and execute a request for proposal and manage the souring of the product. Integration of CIS MarketMaker with the DWCP will provide an end to end e-Sourcing platform that will streamline your work flow and increase efficiency in the procurement process. We hope you will stop by at Chemspec for a demonstration to see this firsthand!

Visit us at Chemspec India

To advertise with us or sponsor one of our events, please contact e.sims@chemicalinfo.com

The opportunity to grow your brand and reach your targeted audience through CIS is better than ever, as our partnership with leading film production company, Lascaux Films, allows companies to create high quality advertisements, videos, and creative multimedia marketing solutions. Click here for advertising information.

Sponsored Article

Corning® Advanced-Flow™ reactor

Corning is the world leader in specialty glass and ceramics. Our exceptional innovation capacity is bringing significant performance benefits to industrial chemical processing. Corning’s Advanced-Flow™ glass reactors are high-throughput, easily scalable reactors that can be customized to specific needs, enabling cost-effective solutions for a wide portfolio of chemical reactions.

Corning’s Advanced-Flow™ ceramic reactors, suited for industrial-scale chemical production, enable simpler and more cost effective continuous-flow chemical processing for a wide variety of economically important reactions. Corning’s proprietary reactor technology increases the efficiency, scalability, safety and quality of chemical processing while reducing performance variability and impact to the environment. It also provides substantial economic benefits. The structure, design, and surface technology are optimized for performance and throughput, continuously and efficiently streaming chemicals together in a highly controlled manner. The visual transparency of the glass reactor also provides an easy way to monitor certain aspects of reactions as they occur.

Made of specialty glass and ceramics, Corning’s reactors are compatible with a wide variety of chemicals. Corning’s technology integrates mass and heat transfer within each fluidic module and maintains precise temperature control at all times. This results in the excellent heat exchange performance as well as superior mixing qualities. Fluidic modules are combined into specially engineered reactors that can manage several unit operations including feed, pre-mix, reaction, neutralization, and quench. Corning’s reactors are designed for manufacturing, testing and experimentation in pharmaceutical, specialty chemical, and fine chemical companies.

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CIS News

Visit us at ChemSpec

We will be presenting at ChemSpec India and ChemSpec USA! We are excited to unveil our new and improved booth as well as meet many new friends in the industry. Please stop by to learn more about our products and see demos of our latest offerings.

ChemSpec India Booth A-10

ChemSpec USA Booth G-25

SourceFinder for ChemSpec

Through our continuing partnership with ChemSpec events worldwide, we are proud to present SourceFinder for ChemSpec. Produced from the Directory of World Chemical Producers (DWCP), SourceFinder is a directory of fine chemical, intermediates and API suppliers exhibiting at ChemSpec. Searchable by chemical name, CAS number or company, SourceFinder allows you to locate the stand number for suppliers of specific chemicals exhibiting at the show. SourceFinder is an invaluable tool for anyone hoping to forge new or maintain existing relationships with manufacturers and suppliers.

Start planning for a successful show with SourceFinder! This free tool will be available for the following shows at the following times, as well as at several kiosks during the shows:

ChemSpec India – 4/16/12 through 5/11/12 click here to view the website

ChemSpec USA – 4/25/12 through 5/23/12 watch for a link to the website on chemicalinfo.com

DWCP NewsFlash

Last month we added 52 companies worldwide, representing more than 585 chemicals.

CIS MarketMaker

Chemical Information Services’ new e-sourcing tool, CIS MarketMaker, will be live this coming Monday! This new platform allows subscribers to the Directory of World

Chemical Producers (DWCP) to move seamlessly from a shortlist of potential chemical and pharmaceutical vendors directly to an RFI, RFP and live e-sourcing event. The addition of CIS MarketMaker represents an important step in the Company’s evolution to a full business intelligence and services company focused on meeting the needs of global procurement professionals. Generating RFI’s using CIS MaketMaker is free! We encourage you to use the product and let us know what you think.

Hackett

In "The CIO Agenda: IT's Top Issues in 2012," Hackett assesses the top IT priorities for Global 1000 companies trying to execute on a global scale while facing increasingly volatile conditions. Consensus among survey respondents shows that success is heavily predicated on IT delivering the right IT strategy and that the two biggest agenda items relate to core capabilities are improving alignment with the business and reducing technology complexity.

Pharma

Sharp Decline in Pharma R&D Productivity

R&D efforts in the pharma industry are not generating nearly as much value as they used to and have actually declined by over 70 percent, according to a recent report published by industry consulting firm Oliver Wyman. From 1996 to 2004, an average of 36 new drugs was approved each year compared to an average of 22 per year from 2005 to 2010. In addition, the value of a drug over its lifetime is decreasing; the average fifth year sales of drugs in the earlier period were 15 percent higher than those in recent group. That means that the total fifth year sales on average from 2005-2010 were only about half that in 1996-2004. At the same time, R&D expenses have doubled over the entire period of the study. The rapid rise of generic penetration is also a factor, reaching 78 percent of the prescription volume in the U.S. in 2011.

GSK Finds Buyer for European OTC Products, Expands in Asia

Omega Pharma will pay $612 million (€470 million) for several GlaxoSmithKline over-the-counter (OTC) brands, including Solpadeine, Zantac, Beconase, vitamin and feminine hygiene lines, and a production facility in Herrenberg, Germany. Previously, GSK sold several North American brands to Prestige Brands Holdings for $555 million (€426 million). The sales of these brands totaled about 10% of GSK’s consumer health business, and were unloaded so the company could focus on core brands and emerging markets. Sale of the weight-loss drug Alli is on hold, however, due to supply issues with

Roche, which manufacturers the active ingredient.

Events

Trade Shows

ChemSpec India; Booth A-10;
April 26-27

ChemSpec USA; Booth G-25;
May 8-9

ChemSpec Europe; Booth A-33;
June 13-14

Webinars

"How to create a generic drug IP strategy using comprehensive patent information"
April 19, 2012 presented by GenericsWeb

Commodity Chemicals

European Ethylene, Polyethylene and PVC Markets Look Strong

Rising feedstock costs have driven up European ethylene contract prices as producers look to prop up cracker margin and March contracts settled at a record high. High oil prices have been seriously hurting margins, but customers are resisting too high a price increase because, while demand is stronger, an improvement is not guaranteed.

European high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe resin prices, meanwhile, rose about 25 percent during the first quarter of 2012. The price increases in this market have been driven by the need to recover the significant losses experienced in the second half of 2011.

Peak Prices for Asian Toluene

Growing demand at a time of tight supply is boosting prices for toluene in Asia, resulting in levels not seen for nearly three and a half years. Sellers are seeing increased interest from Korean, Chinese, and Japanese firms. Planned maintenance at SK Global Chemical and Samsung Total Petrochemicals in April could further tighten supply.

Fine & Specialty Chemicals

Evonik Unloads Colorants Business

Private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners has agreed to acquire Evonik’s global colorants business. The colorants business fits well with Arsenal’s existing portfolio, and the company has plans to grow the business both organically and through appropriate acquisitions. The deal, for which no financial details were disclosed, is expected to close in April 2012.

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Innovation

New Thermoelectric Material Peaking Interest

Scientists at the California Institute of Technology have developed a new thermoelectric material made from copper and selenium that is a solid with liquid-like properties. A thermoelectric material produces electricity when there is a difference in the temperature from one end of the material to the other. The new substance has a framework of selenium atoms through which the copper atoms diffuse. Electricity is conducted by the selenium while the moving copper atoms reduce the thermal conductivity, an important contributor to continued performance. NASA uses thermoelectric materials to power spacecraft and may also be able to use waste heat to power machinery and various types of engines.

Long-Range Chemical Detection with Lasers

Using a powerful telescope and highly sensitive light detectors, a team of researchers at the Vienna University of Technology have developed a technology for analyzing the chemical composition of substances, especially volatile chemicals, at a distance of more than 100 meters using laser light. Raman scattering of the laser light is evaluated to identify the various compounds present in the material. The scientists are working with the Spanish Guardia Civil and the Austrian military to further develop the system.

In-Patient Pharmaceutical Synthesis?

Bioorthogonal chemistry, introduced by Carolyn Bertozzi only 10 years ago, could change the way medicine is practiced. In this approach, the active pharmaceutical ingredients of drugs are prepared inside of the patient, rather than in a manufacturing plant. The potential could be significant for drugs that won’t cross the blood brain barrier or can be absorbed into the blood through the stomach. Separate ingredients could reach the target or get absorbed and then combine to form the actual drug. The trick, of course, is finding ways to get those ingredients to react only with each other and not any of the other vast number of molecules present in the body, and to do so in the desired fashion in aqueous, slightly

basic conditions and at about 98°F.

The first steps toward this goal have been achieved with the development of bioorthogonal chemical reactions with specific sugars, fats, proteins, and even portions of DNA & RNA to determine where the compounds are in a living cell or organism, when it is made and what it binds to or reacts with.

Metal-Organic Frameworks Could Improve Petrochem Production

An iron-based metal-organic framework (MOF) has been found to separate unsaturated hydrocarbons from saturated species at high temperature. This could potentially be used in a much less energy-intensive refining process compared to the currently employed cryogenic distillation process. Researchers at UC Berkeley, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands, discovered that the iron atoms in the very high surface area MOF bind to alkenes much more strongly than alkanes. When a gas mixture is pumped through the MOF, propylene and ethylene bind to the matrix, while propane and ethane pass through. Heating and depressurization of the MOF releases the ethylene and propylene. The group is currently investigating other metals. The hope is to develop a commercial process using an MOF-based filtration device that won’t require the energy-intensive cryogenic cooling step used today.

Business and Finance

Big Plans for New U.S. Chem Industry

At present, nearly 30 new chemical plants are being planned for construction in the U.S. over the next five years, according to the American Chemistry Council. The new capacity is being driven by the availability of cheap natural gas from shale, which is estimated to increase current production by nearly 30 percent. The most recent announcements came from Royal Dutch Shell, which selected a site near Pittsburgh, PA for its ethane cracker. Dow Chemical, Chevron Phillips Chemical, Formosa Plastics, Indorama, Sasol, Mexichem, SABIC and Braskem are also planning or considering new plants.

Big Pharma Backs New Venture Funds

New R&D funds are being established in Canada and the UK to attract pharmaceutical companies and spur innovation. The Merck-Lumira BioScience Fund was launched in Quebec by Merck Canada, Lumira Capital and some other venture capital firms. It will initially be worth several tens of millions of dollars, but Merck has committed to investing $100 million through 2015 for R&D collaboration with Quebec-based biopharma companies and university groups.

Johnson & Johnson and GlaxoSmithKline are also getting into the venture fund business. These two companies are joining with Index Ventures to create a $200 million fund that will invest in early-stage biotech companies. The pharma firms will each contribute $50 million and their knowledge and expertise, while Index will run the fund.

In Britain, the Wellcome Trust will create a $318 million fund that will make long-term investments in biotechnology start-ups in the country that are focused on biomedical research. The fund is presently operating as Project Sigma.

Finally, on a similar but different note, Merck is also investing up to $90 million over a period of seven years in the new California Institute for Biomedical Research (Calibr), which will be a non-profit organization with the goal of transferring innovative biomedical research into commercial medicines. Peter G. Schultz of The Scripps Research Institute will lead Calibr, and project proposals will be reviewed by a scientific advisory board led by Christopher T. Walsh of Harvard University. Merck has first option for an exclusive license on and proteins or small molecule candidates developed by Calibr, but the organization can seek alternative sources of funding for projects not of interest to Merck.

NPRA Changes Name

The National Petrochemical & Refiners Association (NPRA) has changed its name to The American Fuels and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) to better reflect who the organization represents and what it does.

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Gevo Wins Patent Dispute Against Butamax

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) rejected all patent claims of Butamax Advanced Biofuels regarding isobutanol-producing yeast in U.S. Patent No. 7,851,188 being asserted against Gevo. Gevo had previously and successfully petitioned the USPTO to reexamine Butamax's claims in U.S. Patent No. 7,993,889 on production of isobutanol using a recombinant yeast. The Butamax patents are invalid and unenforceable based on the USPTO decisions and confirm Gevo’s position that the technologies in its patents were previously known. Gevo manufactures bio-based isobutanol from renewable raw materials.

U.S. Wants More from J&J in Risperdal Case

The U.S. government is demanding that J&J pay $1.8 billion to settle the civil investigation into its Risperdal marketing practices. This demand came after the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Philadelphia negotiated a fine of $1 billion, which was then rejected by the Justice Department and several states. As of March 8th, the company had offered $1.3 billion, and negotiations were continuing. J&J is accused of marketing the antipsychotic drug for unapproved uses. Separately, J&J is negotiating a fine of $400 million to settle a misdemeanor criminal charge related to Risperdal marketing

Green Chemistry & Biotech

Volkswagen to Evaluate Biodiesel

Volkswagen has signed an agreement with bio-based producers Amyris and Solazyme to test the effects of biodiesel on its lean-diesel technology and on the environment. Amyris produces renewable hydrocarbons

from plant-based sugars for use as fuels and chemical ingredients and yme produces renewable oils from algae.

Renewable Latex for Adhesive and Resin Applications

The price volatility of styrene butadiene (SB) latex has led buyers in the paper coatings industry to seek potential alternatives. ExoSynthetix and Penford are highlighting the potential of starch-based latexes as replacements. They believe bio-latex binders made from starch not only have a lower carbon footprint, but offer improved performance and are cost-competitive.

Big Petchem Investments Planned by Indian Oil

Major Indian producer Indian Oil will invest $3 billion to increase its petrochemical production over the next five years. The investments will involve conversion of stranded streams of propylene at its Vadodara, Mathura and Barauni refineries to added-value products including acrylic acid, acrylates and oxo-alcohols; acetic acid; and polypropylene.

To advertise with us or sponsor one of our events, please contact e.sims@chemicalinfo.com

BioAmber Going Big with Bio-BDO

Bio-succinic acid producer BioAmber Inc. has successfully scaled up its process for the conversion of bio-succinic acid to 100 percent bio-based butanediol, tetrahydrofuran and gamma-butyrolactone to the multi-ton scale. The hydrogenation catalyst technology is licensed from DuPont. Currently the company is developing an integrated plant design that will allow for co-production of bio-succinic acid and the bio-BDO derivatives at one location.

Cobalt Takes Steps Towards Bio-Butanol

Cobalt Technologies demonstrated its dilute acid hydrolysis pretreatment process for converting sugars into n-butanol. The demonstration was carried out at an ANDRITZ pulp and paper mill demonstration facility in Springfield, OH. The process is designed to extract the sugars needed for fermentation from ligno-cellulosic biomass, and was demonstrated for woody biomass, bagasse and agricultural residues on both a bath and continuous basis. The hydrolysates produced during the demonstrations were then fermented at Cobalt’s Mountain View, California facility, and showed that the process meets or exceeds the company’s commercial targets. Next, Cobalt will demonstrate its process on a commercial scale.

Polish Biofuels Company Turning to Algae

Wratislavia-Bio, a Polish company that currently produces biodiesel from rapeseed, announced that it will manufacture third-generation biofuel component from algae. The company will construct a new $25.6 million (€19.2 million) plant in Wroclaw that will have a capacity of 40,000 tonne/year and begin operations in 2013.

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Bio-Based Chemicals on the Road to Competitiveness

Bio-based specialty chemicals and polymers will be cost-competitive with their petrochemical counterparts on a global basis within the next 10-15 years, according to the CEO of Brazilian pulp and paper company Eldorado. Jose Carlos Grubisich further noted that sugarcane and eucalyptus trees will be the key sources of chemical feedstocks in Brazil in the future. Leaders in this sector, according to Grubisich, include Amyris, Solazyme, LS9, Mascoma, KiOR and Codexis

A Brazilian executive at Eastman predicts that at least 50 percent of global bio-based chemicals will originate from Brazil by 2020. By that time, Operations Director Pedro Fortes asserts that 10 percent of all chemicals will be bio-based, and half of those will be produced in Brazil due to the country’s strong position in sugar cane and wood pulp, as well as its increasing production of vegetable oils.

Bioplastics Continue to Make Big Splash

Bio-succinic acid producer Myriant announced a new strategic alliance with biopolymer manufacturer Danimer Scientific to expand its poly-lactic acid plant in Bainbriddge, Georgia as part of a program focused on the development of bio-based plastics from bio-succinic acid. Danimer has already demonstrated production of different bio-succinic acid-based products. It is also developing a polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) bio-based monomer.

Separately, Danone Research and Avantium are jointly developing bio-based polyethylene furanoate bottles using Avantium’s YXY technology. The catalytic technology converts carbohydrates from a wide range of biomass sources (plants, waste streams, wood, grains, etc.) into bio-based polymers. Their goal is to produce bio-based polyethylene furanoate bottles from non-food-based renewables. Avantium expects to start up a polyethylene furanoate 30,000-50,000 tonne/year facility by 2015. Ultimately, Avantium expects to license the YXY technology for large-scale production of bio-plastics.

Allylix Gets Financial Boost from BASF

U.S. renewable specialty chemical producer Allylix, received $13.5 million in funds from BASF Venture Capital GmbH, along with an additional $4.7 million from current investors Tate & Lyle Ventures, Avrio Ventures and Cultivian Ventures for a total of $18.2 million.

Allylix has developed proprietary technology for the production of terpenes and related compounds via fermentation. The specialty chemicals find use in the falvor and fragrance, cosmetics, food and ingredients and other markets. Allylix has successfully demonstrated the cost-competitive production of these products, which will broaden BASF’s selection of renewable raw materials.

End of the Road for PS at McDonalds?

The use of polystyrene foam beverage cups may be coming to an end at McDonald’s. The company is testing a double-walled fiber (paper) hot cup in approximately about 2,000 restaurants in the US as a possible “more environmentally sustainable” alternative. The move is in response to a 2011 shareholder resolution requesting the company to investigate the impact of different beverage containers. Plans for additional testing and wider introduction of the cups have not been established yet.

U.S. EPA May Lose Some Authority

A recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court could mean less influence for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In Sacketts v Environmental Protection Agency, the high court decided unanimously that anyone subject to EPA enforcement actions is entitled to a prompt administrative court review before the agency can begin imposing fines for noncompliance, which can be as high as $37,500/day (€28,500/day). Until this decision, fines could be imposed throughout the course of litigation, so most companies and individuals complied with the EPA order or dropped their plans. Individuals and businesses can now contest an EPA enforcement action without worrying about the potential for huge fines.

A number of groups including the American Petroleum Institute, CropLife America, the Fertilizer Institute, the National Mining Institute, electric utilities, commercial and residential real estate groups, a building owners’ group and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce supported the decision. They believe that the EPA over-extended its authority and used the threat of fines to avoid the need to prove its case in a court, and that the new decision will require EPA to meet constitutional due process requirements.

Environmental groups, on the other hand, believe that the decision will cause the EPA to hesitate to issue enforcement actions and also over-burden the agency with the need to hold oral hearings.

Only time will tell what the actual consequences will be.

Just For Fun

Famous Quotes

“To the timid and hesitating, everything is impossible because it seems so."
(Sir Walter Scott)

“A little Madness in the Spring Is wholesome even for the King"
(Emily Dickinson)

“I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see."
(John Burroughs)

“You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club."
(Jack London)

“Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the men of old; seek what they sought."
(Matsuo Basho)

Why does chlorinated pool water turn blond hair green?

Many people think that blonde hair turns green from the chlorine in swimming pools, but that is a common misconception. It is actually due to the presence of metal complexes in the water, mostly copper, that bind to proteins in the hair that change the color. The metal complexes generally come from the algicides used to treat pool water, but can also occur naturally in water. The chlorine may play a role though, in cases where it oxidizes the copper, as this causes the green color.

If you spend a lot of time in the pool and don’t want your blond hair turning green, try using a shampoo that contains chelating agents that will bind to the metal and remove it from your hair. Or, use a conditioner before you swim – that will seal the hair cuticles and help prevent the copper from binding. Immediately rinsing your hair once you are done swimming can also help.

Chemical Information Services

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Email: d.minor@chemicalinfo.com

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