Shin Etsu Chemical : has developed a transparent, water-resistant coating material that will promote the cyclical use of paper products

Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Tokyo; President: Yasuhiko Saitoh) has developed a new coating material "Sicle", calls "Sa-I-Ku-Lu" that adds a water-resistance property to paper products such as cardboard and also dramatically facilitates their recyclability.

In order to recycle regular papers treated with a water-resistant coating material and a water-resistant film, it is necessary to separate these coating materials and films from paper products in consideration of the burden on the environment. However, this new coating material is composed of silicon and oxygen-derived components, and this new material makes possible a recycling process that does not require the separation of these materials, thus contributing to a reduction of the burden on the environment.

In addition, by means of coating paper products such as cardboard with this new material, when the adhesive tape pasted on the cardboard and other types of paper is peeled away, the printing on the cardboard will not be removed. This characteristic will promote the reuse of cardboard and will also contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gases.

Cardboard that is impregnated and coated with this new coating material "Sicle" that is made from silicon and oxygen - materials that are plentiful on earth - will produce the following characteristics:

1. It has high water-resistance. It will keep its strength even when getting wet from rain and will protect from water damage your unattended important package deliveries left outside.
2. Reuse is possible. Costs can be reduced.
3. Recycling of cardboard is possible. "Sicle" is dissolved by caustic soda being used in the wastepaper recycling process without adversely affecting the environment.
4. It is flame retardant, so that when ignited, it will prevent the further fire spreading.

Because cardboard is easy to recycle inasmuch as its main raw materials are used wastepaper, they are used in a wide range of industries as a packaging material that has a gentle environmental footprint, starting with the food and beverage industries.

In recent years, demand for packaging materials has increased along with the expansion of e-commerce, and the demand for cardboard has been strongly growing. Going forward, demand is expected to robustly grow as well.

During disasters the use is expanding of beds made of cardboard being employed in evacuation centers, and furniture made from cardboard such as tables, chairs and storage containers for general household use as well as pallets made from cardboard that are used in logistics are all attracting a great deal of attention.

"Sicle," the new coating material, in each of its applications provides a high water-resistance capability and contributes to making higher functionality cardboard as a packaging material. Furthermore, from the perspective of environmental conservation and materials cycling, this product will promote development of new markets for cardboard.

Shin-Etsu Chemical will continue to endeavor to enhance our ability to contribute to the solution of various social and customer issues. We will do so by developing and supplying advanced functional products through making full use of the technological power that Shin-Etsu has nurtured up to now, as we work to further contribute to the realization of the sustainability of society.

■Reference Material

These two cardboard boxes were each soaked with water for ten minutes using a high-pressure shower, the box on the left without a Sicle coating and the box on the right with a Sicle coating.