Paris, 8th September 2008
CECA, a subsidiary of the Arkema Group, has been rewarded by the International Road Federation (IRF) for its CECABASE RT® warm mix asphalt technology. The prize is to be presented at a ceremony in Washington (US) in January 2009.
" 12 projects from around the world are honoured in this way every year by the IRF [www.irfnews.org] for their outstanding contribution to the road industry, and we are extremely proud to be among the winners this year. With this award, it is our customers who actually reward our innovation, and this augurs well for our warm mix asphalt technology " explains Christophe Villain, CECA's Managing Director.
Also rewarded in France in 2007 with the Pierre Potier Prize for chemistry at the service of the environment, this technology has now been used in Europe since 2006. CECA can confirm that over 300,000 tonnes of warm mix asphalt incorporating CECABASE RT® were laid on European roads in 2007.
The result of the CRRA (Centre de Recherche Rhône Alpes - ARKEMA) bitumen laboratory's research, this range of additives is simply blended into the bitumen (3kg per tonne) to:
· Lower the production temperature of the asphalt blend by around 50°C with no modification to the process,
· Lay the asphalt mix in situ and compact it at below 100°C, with improved working conditions for site operators,
· Reduce CO2, CO and NOX emissions by some 35% compared to conventional technology,
· Reduce by 90% the dust generated during the production of the bitumen mix compared to conventional technology,
· Increase productivity in the mixing plant by 10 to 20%,
· Multiply by 4 the operating radius from the mixing plant.
" This is a straightforward technology which requires no additional capital investment, and so is available to everyone. For our customers the cost is neutral thanks to savings in energy. Additionally, this technology has proven its robustness with every type of asphalt mix. The success of CECABASE RT® has been achieved through our teams' in-depth knowledge of our customers' activities " confirms Guillaume LEGOUIS, CECA Bitumen Additives Manager.
Find out more about CECABASE RT® warm asphalt mix additives:
The development programme for warm mix asphalt additives was initiated at Arkema's CRRA (Centre de Recherche Rhône-Alpes) Research Centre in 2003. CECA has been marketing the fruit of this research since 2006 in the form of the CECABASE RT® product range. The CRRA team headed by Gilles BARRETO and Juan GONZALEZ has developed a surfactant additive for CECA based on at least 50% renewable raw materials which, blended with the bitumen, helps lower by some 50°C the application temperature of the road surfacing material without impairing its performance. Compared with the traditional road surfacing process, the use of this additive cuts down energy consumption by 20 to 50% depending on the process, while also generating considerably less dust.
Find out more about CECA bitumen additives:
Renowned for its technical support and expertise in road construction technologies, CECA, Europe's leader in this field, offers a comprehensive range of additives produced at its Feuchy plant. Adhesion agents, emulsifiers and process additives constitute and protect over the long term the bond between bitumen and aggregate in every circumstances, in cold or hot processes, and in construction or maintenance.
Find out more about CECA (www.cecachemicals.com):
CECA, a subsidiary of the ARKEMA Group, is a world player in Specialty Chemicals. CECA constantly strives to improve its customers' performance by creating and developing adsorbents, chemical intermediates, and additives.
CECA operates an extensive network of industrial facilities in Europe, together with two research centres (GRL and CRRA) dedicated to Customer innovation.
Press contact
Béatrice TROUDET
T : +33 (0)1 49 00 58 03
beatrice.troudet@ceca.fr
www.cecachemicals.com
Product contact
Guillaume LEGOUIS
T : +33(0)1.49.00 .37.54
guillaume.legouis@ceca.fr
www.cecachemicals.com
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