Business Roundup

TPC Group has expanded expanded capacity for diisobutylene at its Houston facility by 27%. The product is a precursor for lubricants used with low-global warming potential refrigerants. Sulzer , the Swiss engineering firm, has launched VoltaSplit, a new electrified distillation column. The company says VoltaSplit can reduce greenhouse gas emissions 90% versus conventional distillation columns that rely on steam boilers for heat. Idemitsu Kosan and Mitsui Chemicals are advancing plans to rationalize ethylene production in Chiba, Japan. Faced with growing competition from China, the firms say they will likely close Idemitsu’s ethylene cracker in the 2027 fiscal year and consolidate at Mitsui’s plant. DuPont has expanded a plant in Niigata, Japan, nearly doubling photoresist capacity at the site. DuPont’s photoresist line includes products for deep ultraviolet light and immersion technologies. Ingevity CEO John Fortson left the firm Oct. 2 after about 4 years in the job. Board member Luis Fernandez-Moreno