« Green Bitumen »: Arkema awarded 2007 Pierre Potier Prize

03/28/2007    Press Release

Arkema, through its subsidiary CECA, has been awarded a medal for the Pierre Potier prize in the category « chemistry at the service of the environment » in recognition of its innovative formulations for bitumen blends. This major innovation helps reduce energy consumption on road construction sites, while significantly improving environmental impact and working conditions.

 

The Pierre Potier prize, set up in 2006 on the initiative of François Loos, Deputy Minister for Industry, rewards every year chemical manufacturers who engage in « innovation in chemistry for the benefit of the environment ».

Arkema’s Centre de Recherche Rhône-Alpes has developed for CECA, the Company’s Specialty Chemicals subsidiary, a surfactant additive based on at least 50% renewable raw materials which, blended with the bitumen, helps lower by some 50°C the application temperature of the road surfacing material without impairing its performance. Compared with the traditional road surfacing process, the use of this additive cuts down energy consumption by up to 50%, leading to a drop in gaz emissions, and generates considerably less dust.

 

A less energy-hungry and more environmentally friendly process

A conventional road bitumen mix comprises 95% aggregate and 5% oil-based bitumen. The blend needs to be heated to 160-180°C to be sufficiently fluid to be spread on the carriageway.
By mixing in a very small amount of additive developed by Arkema (between 2 and 4 kg per metric tonne of bitumen), the required manufacturing temperature drops to 120°C, and the bitumen mix retains the same properties as a traditional mix produced at 160-180°C.

This “warm” bitumen mix offers many benefits:

- Reduction in energy consumption by 20 to 50%, with an additional positive impact, i.e. a 20 to 50% reduction in gas emissions (carbon dioxide – carbon monoxide – nitrogen oxide).
- 90% reduction in dust generated during the manufacture of the bitumen mix.

 

This process also helps improve working conditions for road construction personnel, by reducing the heat radiation from the bitumen mix. Finally, when designing these bitumen additives, Arkema has endeavored not to impair on-site productivity: their use does not call into question the traditional hot mix technology. They are in fact proving particularly easy to use : in twelve months, ten or so hot mix plants have already used them successfully and 80,000 metric tonnes of warm” bitumen mix have already been produced.

 

Taking the entire European bitumen mix market (350 million metric tonnes), the use of this warm mix could represent fuel savings of 700,000 metric tonnes every year - the equivalent of the annual heating needs of a city the size of Marseille -, coupled with a drop in CO2 emissions of the order of 1.8 million tonnes.

 

Arkema produces and markets this additive through its subsidiary CECA.

 

 

 

A global chemical player, Arkema combines 3 related and integrated business segments: Vinyl Products, Industrial Chemicals, and Performance Products. Present in over 40 countries with 18400 employees*, Arkema achieves sales of 5.7 billion euros. With its 6 research centers in France, the United States and Japan, and internationally recognized brands, Arkema holds leadership positions in its principal markets.

 

CECA, an Arkema Group subsidiary, operates in two specialty chemicals areas: organic products derived from fatty acids, surfactants and interface agents with highly diverse applications, and mineral products for adsorption and filtration applications.