Total Refining & Chemicals (Brussels / Belgium; www.totalrefiningchemicals.com) has added a new flame retardant grade to its “Excell-R” range of expandable polystyrene (EPS). “XLR 4559 SE” has an average diameter of 1.2 mm, and uses the latest flame retardant additive technology, the company said. Like other Excell-R products – which were first launched in 2013 (see Plasteurope.com of 09.10.2012) – the grade is said to provide “excellent sphericity” thanks to an innovative manufacturing process. The family’s transformation behaviour and thermal performance is said to be better than that of conventional EPS, enabling panel thickness reduction while using the equivalent amount of insulation.

Commenting on the launch, Tanguy Kervyn, vice president of the company’s Speciality Polymers division, said, “Excell-R is the culmination of recent developments in microgranulation, combined with the controlled bulk polymerisation process, which Total is using since many years at its 13 polystyrene production units around the world.”