Commercial Alliances

In 2002 Nanocor entered into two major commercial alliances. These differ from technical alliances, described in the Technical Section. Commercial alliances offer prospective users ready sources of nanocomposite plastics for key application sectors. Ready-to-use nanocomposite pellets are available directly from our alliance partners. In many instances users are already buying neat or compounded plastics from these companies, making the process for incorporating nanocomposites fast and economical.

POLYOLEFIN ALLIANCE
Polyolefins comprise a wide variety of commonplace plastics, including polypropylene, polyethylene and thermoplastic olefins. The category also encompasses specialty polymers such as EVA, TPE and EPDM to name a few.

PolyOne Corporation, the world's largest polymer services company, supplies both nanoclay concentrates and nanocomposite compounds, containing our Nanomers, exclusively for polyolefin-based products. PolyOne's applications expertise covers virtually all end-use markets, including automotive, communications, electronics, consumer appliances and construction. PolyOne's concentrates are supplied under the Nanoblend^TM trade name.

Nanocomposite compounds are part of the Maxxam® product family. The newest offering is Maxxam LST® (light, stiff, tough). This compound features a unique combination of light weight, high modulus, and good impact properties.

HIGH BARRIER ALLIANCE
High barrier plastics have revolutionized food and beverage packaging, extending shelf life far beyond what was typical even a few years ago. Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company has been instrumental in shelf life extension with its MXD6 series of high barrier, semi-aromatic nylons.

This alliance partner now offers MXD6 in nanocomposite form under the Imperm^®trade name. Imperm features oxygen and carbon dioxide barrier previously unachievable. Its barrier properties make Imperm superior to EVOH and its processing characteristics are ideal for multilayer films, bottles, and thermoformed containers. Mitsubishi Gas Chemical is the exclusive producer of high barrier nanocomposites containing our Nanomers.