Honeywell (NYSE: HON) announced that Achilles Corp., a leading Japanese manufacturer of industrial products, has adopted Honeywell's next-generation Solstice® Liquid Blowing Agent (LBA) for use in its line of spray polyurethane foam (SPF) building insulation sold under the trade name Achilles Airlon FR-FO.
According to Achilles Corporation, spray foam systems formulated with Solstice LBA demonstrate about 25 percent better thermal insulation performance than water-blown systems.
Foam blowing agents allow closed-cell polyurethane foam insulation to expand and provide the majority of the foam's excellent insulating properties. Solstice LBA has a global warming potential of 1, which is 99.9 percent lower than today's most commonly-used blowing agent, HFC-245fa, a hydrofluorocarbon, while retaining its insulating performance.
"Honeywell is committed to developing technologies that help our customers produce energy-efficient materials that are better for the environment," said Sanjeev Rastogi, business director for Honeywell Fluorine Products. "We are delighted to help Achilles introduce a new class of spray foam insulation in Japan that benefits from our expertise in developing and supplying high-performance, energy-efficient, and low-global-warming-potential solutions."
Solstice LBA is being adopted by SPF manufacturers around the world that are looking to reduce their environmental footprint and comply with environmental and energy efficiency regulations. Solstice LBA is nonflammable and is not a volatile organic compound. It is approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) Program. Honeywell is currently providing commercial quantities to customers, and is building world-scale production capacity for Solstice LBA that is expected to come online early this year.
Blowing agents from Honeywell can be used in a wide range of applications, including household refrigerators and freezers, insulated architectural panels, and refrigerated shipping containers.
In addition to Solstice LBA, Honeywell's family of Solstice-branded products includes stationary and mobile refrigerants, gaseous blowing agents, propellants, and solvents based on Honeywell's new hydrofluoro-olefin technology that helps customers lower their carbon footprint without sacrificing end-product performance.
The Solstice products have been developed and are being commercialized by Honeywell's Fluorine Products business, a leader in the manufacture and supply of non-ozone-depleting refrigerants used by top air-conditioning and refrigeration makers worldwide, and blowing agents for energy-efficient foam insulation, as well as hydrofluoric acid and precursors for nuclear fuel.
Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies is a global leader in developing and manufacturing advanced materials and process technologies. These materials and technologies are used by people every day in a wide range of industries and applications, from petroleum refining to environmentally friendlier refrigerants to bullet-resistant vests. Our advanced materials are critical in the manufacture of products ranging from nylon to computer chips to pharmaceutical packaging. Process technologies developed by our UOP business form the foundation for most of the world's refiners, efficiently producing gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and petrochemicals. UOP is now pioneering technology to produce real fuels from renewable energy sources.