Notice of article publication in "The Chemical Daily（Japan）"

2024.10.02

We are pleased to inform that N.E. CHEMCAT was introduced in The Chemical Daily, the most popular Trade Paper of Chemical industry in Japan. (Published date: 17th September 2024)

The article covers our initiatives to provide new corporate value on the occasion of the 60th anniversary.

Please see below for details of the translated article*.

*This is translated by N.E. CHEMCAT with permission of the Chemical Daily.
　
　
60 Years Strong: Creating Innovative Value
Speeding Up Compliance with Upcoming Emissions Regulations

N.E. CHEMCAT CORPORATION is accelerating its initiatives to expand business in areas related to environmental preservation and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In their core business of auto exhaust gas purification catalysts, the company is ensuring compliance with the proposed new emissions regulations while also developing new products and technologies in the carbon neutrality (decarbonization) field. Drawing on their 60-year history of expertise in technologies for processing, recovering, and recycling precious metals, N.E. CHEMCAT strives to provide new value to meet the demands of the future.

As part of their "Vision 2030" roadmap, which outlines the company's goals through 2030, N.E. CHEMCAT aims to increase the proportion of their business related to environmental preservation and SDGs to 80% or higher. In the field of auto exhaust gas purification catalysts, the company is developing new product lines to meet the proposed new emissions regulations for diesel engines that are expected to become effective in the late 2020s, and is also working on catalysts that are compatible with carbon-neutral fuels, such as biodiesel.

N.E. CHEMCAT is also seeing increasing demand from their customers in the hydrogen value chain, which spans production, storage, transportation, and utilization. With over a decade of experience in mass production of catalysts for hydrogen production used for stationary fuel cells as well as electrode catalysts for fuel cell vehicles (FCVs), the company is now working on the development of next-generation catalysts. Meanwhile, catalysts for hydrogen carriers and catalysts for exhaust gas purification for hydrogen-engine vehicles are also in the pipeline as they anticipate a real-world adaptation of, and an emergence of market for, these technologies.

In the area of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies, N.E. CHEMCAT is developing catalysts for absorbents for direct air capture (DAC) systems that collect CO₂ directly from the atmosphere, as well as for methanation. Also under development are catalysts to purify ammonia exhaust gas, which is expected to become a widely used fuel in thermal power plants and marine vessels.

Another technology the company is actively working on is one that will help to keep food fresh for longer and reduce food waste. They have developed a catalyst that decomposes ethylene gas, which accelerates the ripening and spoilage of fresh fruits and vegetables. The company is conducting market research and evaluating the effectiveness of this technology, anticipating demand in refrigerated warehouses.

They are also one of the four companies that, working in collaboration with the University of Tokyo, have jointly developed a system called "bench-flow reactor" that enables the continuous production of pharmaceuticals with minimal environmental impact. The hydrogenation catalyst the company developed for this equipment reduces the amount of precious metal loading by 80% compared to conventional products, while achieving high activity. N.E. CHEMCAT plans to market this catalyst for wider applications.