Following four years of research and an investment of more than USD 40m, US polymer and fibre producer Invista (Wichita, Kansas; www.invista.com) has unveiled what it calls a “revolutionary” technology for the production of adiponitrile (ADN), a key PA 6.6 feedstock. Benefits include not only improved product yields, reduced energy consumption and lower CO₂ emissions, but also enhanced process stability and reduced capital intensity, Invista said. In addition, the new technology “virtually eliminates benzene from the production process”, the Wichita-based group added.

Invista said it has been operating the new technology at a pilot-scale facility in Orange, Texas / USA for the past two years and is now ready to deploy it at a commercial scale in both Orange and Victoria, Texas, as well as the new plant it is building in Shanghai / China – see Plasteurope.com of 02.03.2011.