RESOURCE CIRCULARITY

INTRODUCTION

With over 100 petrochemical and speciality chemical companies in Singapore, and the strong global demand for sustainable products, there are strong growth opportunities for these companies to pivot towards development and manufacture of green specialty polymers. Various companies have already expressed interest in areas including bio-based polymers, biodegradable polymers, and chemical recycling technology, which are directly addressed by the polymer research in this division. This contributes towards the mission of ISCE2 in providing enabling technologies for Singapore to meet its sustainability goals. In addition, utilisation of sustainable and local feedstock helps to improve resilience of the manufacturing supply chain.  

RESEARCH FOCUS

CIRCULAR MATERIALS AND PROCESSES

1) Covalent adaptable network (CAN) material research including the development of new dynamic covalent bonds, new vitrimeric materials, and conversion of existing polymers into vitrimers, and their applications. These next generation materials meet the mechanical requirements typically required of thermosets while being recyclable and reprocessable like thermoplastics.  

2) Improving end of life options for plastic waste including profiling, polymer depolymerisation technologies as well as upcycling, to obtain monomers, fine chemicals, or functionalised polymers 

3) Development of new biomass-based functional polymers to reduce dependence on fossil fuel feedstocks. This also provides an avenue for valorisation of biomass residues.  

A key enabler to be developed for these thrusts is the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning to aid material development.  

SUSTAINABLE FORMULATION AND APPLICATIONS

Within the realm of functional polymers, RC has an established portfolio of sustainable product innovations. Some key technologies include:  

1) Anti fouling materials and coatings, including development of eco-degradable (traceless) antimicrobial polymers and the development of self-disinfecting nano-structured surfaces, as well as their applications, such as in marine environments and as well as anti-hydrogen-embrittlement.  

2) Microemulsion and encapsulation technologies to improve biodegradability and efficiency of consumer care products.  

3) Membrane technology including covalent organic framework and polymeric materials for sustainability applications such as solvent recovery and water purification. 

HIGHLIGHTS

Hyphens Pharma: ISCE2's jointly developed formulation allowed Hyphens to successfully launch a long-lasting moisturizer, Ceradan Advanced®, in Asia and steroid cream, Meradan®, in Indonesia, both for treatment of atopic dermatitis. The success of Ceradan Advanced® has enabled the rest of the Ceradan® range to enter the retail channel for mass market. Meradan® is the company’s first product containing an active pharmaceutical ingredient. 

Nippon Paint: Joint programme on Autonomous Vehicle / Autonomous Navigation (AV/AN) related R&D work and helped to develop their lab-infrastructure on AV / AN coatings research. 

Aegis Packaging (joint venture between A*STAR and Regentech Pte Ltd): Development of O₂X™, one of the best gas barrier coatings in the global market, allowing for production of recyclable mono-polyolefin packaging.   