Feasibility study for an Estonian Materials Technology Programme

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37 Feasibility study for an Estonian Materials Technology Programme 2. Materials technology in Estonia Technology transfer potential The spearheads of Estonian chemistry research are related to four key areas: 1) research and development of oil shale production and processing technologies, 2) developing materials technologies for high technology applications and 3) computational modelling and measurement. Most of oil shale related research is not directly related to materials technologies and thus it will not be discussed any further in this study. The other key areas of materials research are mostly related to advanced materials technologies and not directly to the traditional chemical industry producing different kinds of chemicals for e.g. agricultural purposes. Therefore, the most relevant chemical industry company for materials technologies is the rare earth metal producer Silmet, which has some collaboration with Estonian universities. According to Silmet’s R&D manager, the company is looking for new projects to add value to their products. Global status, trends and connection to Estonian chemicals industry Chemicals industry plays a very important role in the development of the European economy. It corresponds to 1.1% of GDP (2009) and comes second in added value among industries after pharmaceuticals. The total sales of the chemicals industry in Europe was 450 billion Euros in 2009 consisting of petrochemicals (25%), polymers (23%), basic inorganics (12%), specialities (26%) and consumer chemicals (14%). Similarly to Estonia, most chemical industry companies in Europe are SMEs (61%), but most of the sales and employment originates from large corporations (72% and 65% respectively). The American Chemical Society has identified five major areas crucial to the future development of chemical industry from materials technology view point 33 . These areas are: New materials New concepts in catalysis for polymers Polymer-structure property relationships Colloid/interface science (especially polymers and thin films) Polymer composites Continued development of new materials Materials characterisation R&D tools Real-time measurements Materials modelling and prediction Methods development for interfaces, biomaterials, surface chemistry and catalysis Modelling theory Additives Prediction/modelling Understanding of surface chemistry and interactions of additives Nanoparticles Disassembly, recovery and recycling Collection of raw materials Deriving pure monomers and intermediates from polymers Chemistry for mixed polymers streams and polymers modification High yield separation process The roadmap and technology trends are very much related to polymer materials, which is mostly lacking in Estonian chemicals industry. Another huge technology trend for chemicals industry is the importance of modelling and prediction methodologies, which is already studied to large extent at Estonian universities and spinoff companies (especially Molcode and Baltic Technology Development). The development of novel materials is also seen as very important in the chemicals industry and there are important initiatives at Estonian universities and companies related to new nanomaterials, carbon based materials, rare-earth metals and biomaterials. 33 Vision 2020 Chemical Industry of The Future – Technology Roadmaps for Materials (2000)
38 Feasibility study for an Estonian Materials Technology Programme 2. Materials technology in Estonia Summary and conclusions In conclusion, the Estonian chemicals industry is mostly focused on activities that are not directly relevant to materials technologies. However, there are several important areas in both industry and universities that form the basis for very much of the materials technology activities in the country. Altogether, Estonian chemical industry consists of two very interesting niche areas related to advanced materials and chemicals industry is also an important enabler in triggering research and development 1. Oil shale industry Utilisation of oil shale in petrochemicals production Utilisation of oil shale waste in various materials production 2. Rare-earth metals and oxides: Taking full advantage of rare earth metals expertise Used in various advanced materials based solutions 3. Utilizing chemistry innovations in other industries Construction materials, modelling In addition, Chemical industry is an important raw materials producer for other industries R&D work is strong Very strong R&D base in universities in fundamental research: TUT, TU, KBFI, etc. Also in modeling and measurement (e.g. research that led to the establishment of Molcode) Education has also an important place in educating workforce for different industries: plastics, textiles, construction materials, etc. Case: AS Silmet Background Silmet, which is located in the north-eastern part of Estonia in Sillamäe, is one of largest rare earth metal and rare earth metal oxides producers in Europe. The company has annual production of up to 3000 tonnes of rare earth products and up to 700 tonnes of rare earth metals. The company employs more than 500 people in three factories for rare earth metal separation, production and metallurgy. The company was originally established in the Soviet Union era for processing of uranium and it started the rare earth metal production in the 1970s. The company was privatised in 1997 and since then it has been constantly developing its processes for the production of high quality rare earth metals. Materials technology The metals produced by Silmet are of high strategic importance globally as they are the key ingredients in many high technology applications such as Tantalum, which is mostly used in electrolytic capacitors, and Niobium, which can be applied e.g. in superconductive magnets. The rare earth metals produced by Silmet include Lanthanum, Cerium, Praseodymium, Neodymium and they are extracted from the mineral Loparite. Being an established company with a long history, Silmet is currently mostly focused on the success of its day-to-day activities. The price pressure coming from the Chinese rare earth metal producers is severe and largely affects the capabilities of western countries of establishing their own rare earth metal production. The largest challenge for the industry today is the demand for rare earth metals and their price volatility mainly due to changes in world politics and economic growth. The most important factors for Silmet’s success so far has been its good market knowledge, qualified employees and good management which are considered the key success factors also in the future. The importance of materials technology and advanced materials are a twofold issue for a rare earth metal producer such as Silmet. On one hand, novel materials technology and other technological inventions can greatly increase the demand for rare earth metals if they are required for producing these new inventions. On the other hand, there is great determination globally to develop artificial materials (e.g. carbon based materials) and solutions that could replace rare earth metals completely for environmental reasons – to save these scarce natural resources.
Page 1 and 2: Innovation studies 15 2011 Feasibil
Page 3 and 4: Authors: Commissioned by Technology
Page 5 and 6: Table of Contents Executive summary
Page 7 and 8: List of Figures Figure 1 Characteri
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