Hanwha Chemical is advancing into the eco-friendly plasticizer market with its newly developed plasticizer ECO-DEHCH, the company said Wednesday.
Plasticizers are additives that increase plasticity, often used in PCV applications.
Hanwha Chemical’s new plasticizer is free of phthalates, unlike conventional plasticizers that include phthalates, which are chemicals harmful to humans, the company explained.
(Yonhap)
From Thursday, the company will start manufacturing its new plasticizer at its facility in Ulsan, North Gyeongsang Province.
Annual production of the plasticizer is expected to reach some 15,000 tons, it added.
The market size of eco-friendly plasticizers is currently 1.5 trillion won ($1.2 billion) worldwide, with an annual growth rate of 6 percent.
The market is expected to continue its growth, as eco-friendly plasticizers will keep replacing the conventional phthalate plasticizers, amid increasing worldwide regulations on phthalate use.
The current market size of conventional phthalate plasticizers is some 8 trillion won worldwide, the company said.
By Shim Woo-hyun (ws@heraldcorp.com)