ExxonMobil Chemical boosts role in auto industry

High-performance specialty films and polymers help make vehicles lighter, safer and more energy-efficient.

The automotive industry represents a major market for products manufactured by ExxonMobil Chemical Company. During the past year, the company expanded its role in that industry by introducing new product applications and adding capacity at company plants in Florida and Louisiana as well as through a third-party facility in Singapore. The effort has opened new markets and also has won the company recognition for its technical leadership.

Better battery efficiency
ExxonMobil Chemical was honored in October when it received a leading industry innovation award for its battery separator film technology. Pioneered by a team of company scientists led by Dr. Pat Brant, this technology can significantly improve the power, capacity, stability and safety of lithium-ion batteries. Such enhanced performance can enable the use of smaller, more powerful batteries in the next generation of lower-emission vehicles.

One such automobile is the new Maya-300, manufactured by Canada-based Electrovaya, which produces lithium-ion battery systems. Last January, ExxonMobil announced that its battery separator film technology will be a key component of Electrovaya's battery systems.

“This film is just one of many technologies we’re working on to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions in the transportation sector,” says Steve Pryor, president of ExxonMobil Chemical Company. “Our battery separator film could help usher in a new wave of more fuel-efficient hybrid and electric vehicles.”

Electrovaya’s Maya-300 vehicle is designed specifically for urban use, with a driving range of up to 120 miles before battery recharge. Sankar Das Gupta, the company’s chief executive officer, says ExxonMobil’s battery film technology helps make his company’s battery systems more energy-efficient, reliable and safe.

“We view our zero-emission Maya-300 vehicle as marking a new era in which affordable clean transportation solutions become available with sufficient range for daily local driving,” he says.

Another customer for ExxonMobil’s battery separator film is Indiana-based EnerDel, which manufactures lithium-ion battery systems.

“Highly advanced, precision materials are essential to the rapid progress we see in lithium-ion battery development,” says EnerDel Chief Executive Ulrik Grape. “Improved performance and efficiency, along with lower costs, will help bring a new generation of electric and hybrid vehicles to market quickly.”

ExxonMobil Chemical produces its battery separator film at a plant in Nasu, Japan. To meet growing demand for the product, ExxonMobil and its Japanese affiliate TonenGeneral recently began construction of a new manufacturing plant in Gumi, South Korea. Startup is expected in late 2009.

The best of both rubber and plastic
Demand is growing rapidly for ExxonMobil Chemical’s revolutionary new tire material technology that improves vehicle fuel efficiency.

Known as Exxcore dynamically vulcanized alloy (DVA), the material is used in tire innerliners to achieve improved air retention with less material.

“This reduces air loss between fillings, which not only makes for safer driving but also helps conserve energy,” says Art Sullivan, ExxonMobil Chemical vice pres-ident for the butyl polymers
business.

Exxcore DVA combines the flexibility and elasticity of rubber with the lower air permeability of plastic. The result is air permeability seven to 10 times lower than that of existing innerliner materials.

Sullivan notes that if all vehicle tires on the road in the United States retained air pressure as well as tires made with Exxcore DVA, the result would be a savings of more than 700 million gallons of fuel annually.

“Greenhouse gases would also be reduced by more than 6 million tons a year,” he says. “That’s equivalent to taking more than a million cars off the roads.”

Yokohama Rubber Company began manufacturing tires with Exxcore DVA innerliners this year. In 2009, Cheng Shin Rubber Company, manufacturer of the popular Maxxis brand, will introduce Exxcore DVA into its product line.

To help meet increased demand for this unique product, ExxonMobil Chemical opened a new manufacturing facility last August at its existing site in Pensacola, Florida.

Growth strategy for high-performance plastics
Today’s automobiles are built with thousands of parts ranging in size from minute engine components to bumpers and side panels, many of which are plastic. These polymer-based parts are used under the hood, in the interior cabin – including instrument panels – and in exterior parts such as bumper fascia. ExxonMobil is a leading supplier of polyolefinic polymers used in the manufacture of such parts.

As demand for its high-performance polymers continues to grow, last January the company opened a new specialty compounding facility in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, located within one mile of its petrochemical complex. Annual capacity is 40,000 tons of specialty compounded products.

“This new capacity is a key part of our global automotive growth strategy,” says Jim McKinley, global manager of ExxonMobil Chemical’s specialty compounds business. “It enhances our supply capabilities in North America and leverages our global supply and technical capabilities to provide high-quality compounded products to our customers worldwide.”

The Baton Rouge facility includes an extensive product support and testing center to assist in manufacturing new products more quickly and cost-effectively. It is one of several ExxonMobil Chemical product support and automotive-development centers around the world that promote collaboration between ExxonMobil and its customers.

New product capacity in Singapore
To improve the supply of its high-performance specialty compounds in the Asia-Pacific region, ExxonMobil signed a compounding agreement last September with Resin & Pigment Technologies Pte. Ltd. (R&P).

The two companies agreed that R&P will manufacture a broad range of ExxonMobil Chemical’s specialty compounds for use in automotive interior and exterior applications, as well as in major appliances and other consumer products. The R&P facility is located on Jurong Island, Singapore, less than a mile from ExxonMobil’s integrated
petrochemical complex.

Specialty compounds, such as ExxonMobil’s line of Exxtral performance polyolefins, will be produced at R&P’s facility to supply customers throughout the Asia-Pacific region. This new capacity, which can be expanded significantly in line with growing needs, improves ExxonMobil Chemical’s global supply.

PSA Peugeot Citroën specifies Exxtral
Exxtral performance polyolefins are becoming increasingly popular with automotive designers and engineers seeking lighter materials that provide needed strength and attractive appearance at an affordable cost.

One example is the auto manufacturer PSA Peugeot Citroën, which recently approved the use of Exxtral performance polyolefins for interior components in its Berlingo and Partner models. The Exxtral materials will be used in instrument panels and door panels as well as in upper and lower trim.