Invista Will Enter Nylon 12 Business

Invista says it is plunging into the nylon 12 business after its development of new monomer production technology. A long-chain polymer used in brake and fuel lines, nylon 12 is made through the polymerization of laurolactam, a derivative of cyclododecatriene (CDT). A 2012 explosion at an Evonik Industries CDT plant in Germany led to a shortage of nylon 12 that nearly crippled the auto industry (C&EN, Feb. 18, page 28). Invista pitched in with CDT supplies to help ease the shortage. “Since then, in an effort to provide this market with more supply options, we have been researching novel approaches to the production of nylon 12 monomer and other long-chain molecules,” says Ed Sullivan, Invista’s global business director for C₁₂.