Braskem inaugurates expansion of the Technology and Innovation Center (TIC)

The investment in the expansion of the Triunfo Petrochemical Complex was BRL 108 million

With focus on sustainable investments, Braskem inaugurated on Wednesday the expansion of its Technology and Innovation Center (CTI), located in the Petrochemical Complex of Triunfo, in the Metropolitan Region. The new building has a total area of 6,000 m2, of which 2,000 m2 are laboratories equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, representing a 25% increase in the company’s research and development area at the site. The investment in the expansion was BRL 108 million, of which BRL 64 million were allocated to the physical structure of the new building and BRL 44 million to laboratory equipment.

According to the Head of Product Development and Advanced Materials at Braskem, Fabio Lamon, the building now houses expanded laboratory facilities for catalysis and advanced characterization, chromatography, polymer fractionation, and microscopy. The site has a dedicated structure for PVC and EVA, focusing on the search for new applications of these resins, such as new uses for Green EVA produced from sugarcane. “The TIC located at the Triunfo Pole is the largest of Braskem’s technology and innovation centers,” he says.

Lamon explains that the company has 200 active projects. “Our goal by the end of 2023, is to complete projects and deliver new products that add up to around $200 million in adjusted net present value at risk. It is a metric to measure innovation. We surround this goal with a continued delivery of projects that generate value for the chain,” he emphasizes, adding that sustainable innovations reinforce the company’s commitment to the circular economy and to complying with good practices regarding its role in the social and environmental spheres. “The goal is to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050,” he stresses.

Due to the need to adapt to good practice policies, Lamon emphasizes that there is an increasing use of renewable source resins for various applications, including higher value-added applications. According to Lamon, the footwear and fashion industry is among the beneficiaries with the development of new technologies, such as renewable EVA. “A major global bra manufacturer has replaced the foamy material used in the bra’s bulge with the new expanded EVA technology,” he explains. According to Lamon, the major sporting goods brands have found solutions from the use of green polyethylene and Green EVA.

Vice-presidente of Innovation, Technology and Sustainable Development at Braskem, Antonio Queiroz, highlights that the new laboratory will allow for applications and solutions of PVC, EVA, and Green EVA produced from sugarcane. “The site also houses a state-of-the-art Quality Control Laboratory, which controls the resins we produce at the Triunfo complex. And it is this capacity of Braskem that will allow the development of new technologies for a carbon neutral circular economy,” he highlights. Queiroz says that the structure is interconnected in action platforms focused on recycling, use of biomass to produce chemicals, lower consumption of raw materials, energy, and carbon emissions.

Braskem’s CEO, Roberto Bischoff, says that the new structure has a strategic role in the development of sustainable products. According to Bischoff, the company has invested BRL 3.5 billion over the last five years in Rio Grande do Sul. This part of sustainability is of fundamental importance. In the last two years, we have expanded the production capacity of this plant and its start-up is expected to take place in May or early June. This is a renewable feedstock made from ethanol produced in Brazil and is increasingly being exported and accepted by countries. The growth of Braskem is clearly linked to bioproducts, as emphasized by the company’s representatives.