May 18, 2016

Solvay Streamlines Access to Aquivion PFSA Portfolio with New Global Distributor and Expanded Product Line

Solvay Specialty Polymers, a leading global supplier of high-performance thermoplastics, fluoropolymers and specialty materials, has named the life science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, which operates as MilliporeSigma in the United States and Canada, to be the authorized global distributor of its high-performance Aquivion perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) product line. Solvay's innovative materials technology is a key enabler for electrical storage and conversion devices, such as fuel cells, electrolyzers and flow batteries used in conjunction with zero-emission electricity sources. Coinciding with the new distribution agreement, Solvay also expanded its Aquivion portfolio and now offers the industry's broadest range of PFSA compositions and product forms, which includes extruded membranes, dispersions, powders and moldable pellets.
 
"With this key partnership, we can now supply our state-of-the-art PFSA materials within a matter of days to industry developers and researchers throughout the world," said Matthias Gebert, global product and application manager at Solvay Specialty Polymers. "This arrangement advances Solvay's ambition to support both large and small innovators seeking functionalized PFSA materials to help them surmount challenges like emission-free mobility, large-capacity renewable electricity storage, environmentally-friendly chemical processing, efficient large-format OLED screens and other solutions aimed at combating metropolitan pollution and global warming."
 
Solvay's expanded Aquivion ® PFSA portfolio introduces a broad range of equivalent weights (EW), enabling new product and performance options. The short side-chain chemistry of its low EW PFSA grades, for example, delivers significantly higher electrochemical functionality per unit mass than competitive PFSA products. Meanwhile, the higher crystallinity of Solvay's high EW grades helps improve the mechanical robustness and durability of end-use applications.
 
Solvay's expanded Aquivion portfolio also signals the availability of PFSA materials in a broader range of physical forms, including:
  • Membranes: Aquivion E98-15S is an extruded PFSA membrane for electrochemical hydrogen compression, or dynamically operated water electrolyzers that deliver high-pressure hydrogen in a single step without any moving parts.
  • Dispersions: Aquivion D98-25BS and D72-25BS dispersions broaden Solvay's range of copolymer compositions. Potential applications encompass polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell electrodes; cast ion exchange membranes used in high-capacity, multi-hour storage batteries for renewable energy; production of superacid catalysts; and surface treatment of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membranes used to reduce de-wetting of industrial liquid purification units.
  • Powders: Aquivion PW79S, PW87S and PW98 grades represent the first powder-form PFSAs in Solvay's portfolio. They offer greater chemical resistance than conventional exchange resins, which is critical for withstanding exposure to aggressive environments. These powder grades can serve directly as solid acid catalysts or ion exchange resins.
  • Pellets: Aquivion P87S-SO2F and P98-SO2F perfluorosulfonic fluoride (PFSF) resins signify Solvay's first two melt-processable precursor grades. These high-performance materials expand options for fabricating high-purity, custom-molded shapes that become reactive components in chemical applications, such as pure-polymer acid catalysts.
Solvay Specialty Polymers