Binzhou, Shandong – Rubber materials maker Chambroad Zhongju New Materials is to add new facilities with the capacity to produce 150 kilotonne per annum (ktpa) of bromobutyl rubber (BIIR) at its plant in Binzhou, Shandong.

The project’s phase 1, with a nameplate capacity of 70ktpa for BIIR production, passed environmental regulatory approval in July, said the company’s website.

Spanning 63,000 square metres and also featuring a 100ktpa plant for isbutene production, the first phase is slated to come on stream in October 2020.

Chambroad Zhongju currently has a 50ktpa capacity for butyl rubber (IIR).

It is also planning a €55 million (430 million yuan) project for modified catonic styrene-butadiene latex used as an emulsifying agent for asphalt. The project will make 5ktpa of liquid emulsifyer and 3ktpa of powder emulsifier each year.

“High performance modified emulsifier has great market prospects with the development of China’s highway construction and maintenance markets,” said the project’s environmental filing.

Chambroad Zhongju was set up in 2016 in Binzhou’s Boxing Economic Devleopment Zone. It is a fully owned subsidiary of privately held Chambroad Petrochemicals.