Chemical innovations from Clariant

Clariant will be attending this year's Tanning Tech, displaying their full range of products for the wet-end and finishing. Wet-end chemicals Beamhouse Nonylphenol ethoxylate is classified as a toxic material in Europe and it will be prohibited from 2005. Clariant have, therefore, been concentrating their efforts on finding an environmentally-friendly replacement for the beamhouse. Designed for the beamhouse during soaking, liming, deliming and tanning, Tergolix RD 03 006 is an eco-friendly degreasing/wetting replacement for nonylphenol ethoxylated products. It has excellent wetting/degreasing action, high emulsifying power, strong degreasing action and is biodegradable. Retanning This year, Clariant have added a new member to their RF family of syntans with free-formaldehyde levels as low as 20ppm. Designed for use in the retannage of most leather types, Tergotan RD 01 016 is an amino resin-based product in powder form. The tendency of amino resins to give a high amount of free-formaldehyde in leather has limited their range of application. Tergotan RD 01 016 has been developed to give extremely low free-formaldehyde content, opening new and wider possibilities of application. Sandotan SCU is a sulfone-based retanning agent developed in response to the increasing demands for chrome-free leathers. Sandotan SCU is suitable for all chrome-free leathers, such as automotive, upholstery, garment, shoe upper, sport shoe and fancy leathers. It can be used alone or with a co-application of other retanning agents. Syntans Tergotan PMB liquid is a special co-polymer based on synthetic and natural materials that can be used at the highest levels, completely replacing normal syntans that contain formaldehyde. The product is a phenol and formaldehyde-free alternative to conventional syntans with an excellent selective filling effect. Tanicor RD 01 009 powder is a phenolic-based retanning agent specially developed to meet increasing demands in the market for softer, tighter and fuller dyed leathers. The product is suitable for all types of softies, like garments, softy nappas, sport shoe, upholstery and car upholstery, where fullness and softness are required. Tergotan RD 04 001 liquid is an organic resin of an ester co-polymer and developed as a versatile retanning co-polymer for all types of soft leathers. The product can be used at different stages of the retanning, depending on the desired effect and demands on the final leather. It is especially recommended where a fine, soft and tight grain with good milling properties is required. Fatliquors Derminol FSA liquid is a double oxidised marine-based fatliquor developed to utilise only renewable sources of raw material. It is recommended for all leathers such as shoe upper, upholstery, automotive and garment. It is available as both a 65% active product and at the higher concentration of 90%. The product is ideal as a solo fatliquor or in combination with other oils. Derminol FSB liquid is an oxidised sulfated/sulfited marine-based multi-purpose fatliquor also developed to use only renewable sources of raw material. It can be used alone or in combination with other oils. Derminol RA liquid is a combination of synthetic esters developed to give maximum softness and a lightweight feel. It is recommended for all types of leathers where a high degree of softness is required, such as garment, upholstery, upper and softy nappa leathers. Derminol ALE liquid is a combination of phosphoric esters and synthetic oils that imparts softness and a lightweight feel. It is recommended for chrome and chrome-free automotive leather in combination with natural fatliquors such as Derminol NLM. Dermalix AS liquid is a compact product for the manufacture of furniture leathers. The product's combined neutralising, retanning and fatliquoring action allows it to be used alone or as the main product during processing. This allows very short processing times, simple recipes and reduces processing costs while producing leathers with excellent aesthetic properties. Similarly, Derminol COA liquid is a compact product for automotive leathers and offers the same benefits as Dermalix AS. Wet-end dyes and dyeing auxiliaries Derma Soft dyes are anionic pre-dispersed dyes developed to dye leather with outstanding dyeing properties in pastel shades. Excellent levelness properties are obtained in the leather without the need to add dispersion agents before or during the dyeing. Clariant's Derma Flor Dyes are a new range of seven dyes that are easy to handle and cover all important shades. They are very cost-effective and can be used for all kinds of leathers, especially for shoe upper leather. For more information on Clariant's Derma ranges, see this issue pp38-39 and August/September 2004 pp40-41. The following dyestuffs have been added to the company's existing Derma range: Derma Blue RF p; Derma Carbon 2R p; Derma Carbon 4P p; Derma Havana HG p; Derma Brown 3GNF p; and Derma Yellow GL p. MatchWizard is Clariant's new colour matching tool that has been optimised over the past three years with excellent results.It allows the technician to select the most appropriate dyes (by behaviour, fastness, cost etc) and is a useful tool in determining the right ratio between dyestuff and recipe. It can assist the technician in matching shades and predicting metamerism and helps colour communication by sending/receiving digital colours. Finishing Upgrading Melio Aquabase RN-01 and RN-02 are upgrading grounds for rollercoater application. RN-01 is for automotive, shoe upper, upholstery and splits, while RN-02 is for upholstery, shoe upper, leathergoods and splits. The products have high filling properties, particularly for deeper crust damage and good adhesion and interadhesion. They have excellent application and good buffing behaviour. Melio Aquabase FPR-01 and FPS-01 are polishable upgrading grounds, FPR-01 for rollercoater application and FPS-01 for spray application. Both can be used for full grain finishes or on pre-buffed leathers. There is no need to buff after application and the products can be polished or plated. They offer elegant upgrading for light-to-medium-light crust damage, are suitable for shoe upper, garment and upholstery and there is no overloading of the grain. Melio Aquabase VR-01 and VS-01 are plateable upgrading grounds, VR-01 for rollercoater application and VS-01 for spray application. The products can be used for full grain or corrected grain articles. There is no need to buff after application but, if chosen, the products offer excellent buffability. They offer high filling properties for light-to-medium deep crust damage and are suitable for shoe upper, upholstery, garment and leathergoods. Melio Aquabase MA-01 and MN are upgrading grounds for hand spatula application. MN is designed for automotive and MA-01 is especially suitable for upholstery leathers and they have high filling properties for deep crust damage. They have excellent application, good buffing behaviour and are easy to extend. Melio Promul K-27.A is a cationic pu binder that is NMP-free, easy to polish and has good adhesion on many crust types. There is no grain overloading and low levels of stickiness. Melio 06-G-87 is a very soft cationic filler with excellent filling power and good polishability. Melio 06-F-02 is an aqueous wax for pull-up imitations on already pigmented base coats. It is also suitable for burnish imitations on already pigmented base coats and for the so-called 'sand effect'. Melio 02-E-21 (very soft compact binder) and Melio 02-E-24 (soft compact binder) are formulated binders for the rational finishing of softer leather types such as upholstery and shoe nappa and offer good physical properties. They have a high upgrading power, leave no stickiness and offer good embossing behaviour with no overloading of the grain. 02-E-21 is suitable not only for conventional but also for Melio Foam finishes. Melio Wax PW-301 is an aqueous pull-up wax with excellent levelling and only slightly highlights crust damage. It can be applied by rollercoater or by spray, is easily mixable into water and is compatible with the company's aqueous pull-up oils. From Clariant's Aqualen system, Aqualen Top DC-2042 offers high resistance against soil during dry milling and an elegant and natural feel. It has high rub resistance, a medium dullness without grey break and is crosslinkable with Aqualen AKU or Aqualen IW-80.A. Also from the Aqualen system, Melio 09-L-34 provides very high abrasion and high hydrolysis resistance. It is easily crosslinked with Aqualen IW-80.A and is specially suitable for automotive leathers. Hall 34, stand B30-C27