New route to bimodal HDPE.

Now there's a lower-cost way to produce bimodal HDPE for blown film. Univation Technologies LLC in Houston says its new Prodigy BMC100 multi-site catalyst can make bimodal resin in a single Unipol gas-phase reactor. That eliminates the cost and complexity of multiple reactors. Bimodal resin is projected to be one of the fastest-growing HDPE products through 2010. It boasts excellent processability, tear and impact strength, and stiffness for grocery bags and can liners.

Univation, a joint venture of ExxonMobil Chemical and Dow Chemical and the licensor of Unipol technology, says single-reactor polymerization saves 40% of the cost of a 600-million-lb/yr dual-reactor system. The new catalyst can run in existing Unipol reactors with minor modification and no loss of throughput. Univation also claims its bimodal resin matches the best dual-reactor resins on the market. The company has other PE catalysts in development for pipe and blow molding of bottles and industrial parts.