The polymers business unit of the refining and chemicals division of Total (Paris / France; www.total.com) will begin manufacturing EPS bead products produced in a newly-developed polymer, “Excell-R”, in 2013. Total said the polymer offers significantly higher thermal insulation characteristics than conventional white EPS, bringing improved performance in foam insulation applications.

Carl Van Camp, senior vice president polymers at Total, said: “The development of our innovative insulation solution Excell-R demonstrates our group’s efforts and commitment to optimise the use of energy resources.” The material complements the company’s existing XPS products developed specifically for insulation applications.