Business Roundup

Trinseo has started a pilot plant at its site in Terneuzen, the Netherlands, that will test a new recycling process that uses solvents to extract polycarbonate from other materials. The resulting resins can be used in automotive parts, cell phone cases, and printer enclosures.

DSM-Firmenich, the recently merged company comprising specialty chemical firm DSM and flavor and fragrance maker Firmenich, will end its dual-CEO system inherited from DSM. Former DSM co-CEO Dimitri de Vreeze will continue to lead the new company, while Geraldine Matchett—former DSM co-CEO and current joint head of DSM-​Firmenich—will depart Sept. 1.

BASF is retooling facilities in Jiangsu and Guangdong, China, to add production of binders for battery anodes in response to growing demand for electric cars. The binders are based on modified styrene-butadiene rubber.

Arkema plans to acquire Polytec PT, a company that produces adhesives that absorb heat produced when lithium-ion batteries are being used or charged. Last year, Arkema announced it was expanding production of the battery binder poly (vinylidene fluoride) in France and China.

Recursion, a digital drug discovery firm based in Salt Lake City, has acquired the artificial intelligence–enabled drug discovery companies Cyclica, based in Toronto, and Valence, based in Montreal. The acquisitions will add digital chemistry and machine learning capabilities to Recursion’s automated wet laboratory and supercomputer platform.

Origin Materials and Indorama Ventures will explore converting one of Indorama’s US chemical plants to one that makes biobased materials. The facility would transform cellulose-derived chloromethylfurfural from Origin into products such as polyester.

Boehringer Ingelheim will collaborate with the Australian company Kinoxis Therapeutics to develop small-molecule drugs that target oxytocin receptors as a way to treat psychiatric disorders. Kinoxis will receive an undisclosed cash sum and is eligible for royalties and $181 million in milestone payments.

Veranova, a pharmaceutical chemical maker that was formerly part of Johnson Matthey, named Mike Riley CEO, effective May 8. Riley had been an executive with the drug services firm Catalent.