Science-Driven Solutions to Advance Human Progress
SOUTH AFRICA (10 September, 2014) — According to the UN, the world’s population is expected to reach approximately 8.3 billion by 2030, and society will need 50 percent more food, 45 percent more energy, and 30 percent more water to sustain this growth. Science will play a critical role in addressing these global challenges, and Dow (NYSE: DOW) is dedicated to innovating science-driven solutions.
With its newest breakthrough, BETAMATE™ Structural Adhesives, Dow delivers on an aggressive target it set in 2006 to introduce three “Breakthroughs” that will significantly help solve world challenges, such as affordable and adequate food supply, decent housing, energy and climate change, and clean water.
This commitment to deliver three “Breakthroughs to World Challenges” by 2015 is one of Dow’s 2015 Sustainability Goals, an aggressive set of 10-year targets that seeks to improve sustainability in seven core areas, which also include: Sustainable Chemistry; Addressing Climate Change; Energy Efficiency and Conservation; Product Safety Leadership; Contributing to Community Success; and Local Protection of Human Health and the Environment.
“Today, we celebrate a milestone in Dow’s sustainability journey – fulfilling our commitment to deliver at least three Breakthroughs to World Challenges in areas like food and nutrition, fresh water, and energy and climate change,” says Neil Hawkins, Dow corporate vice president, Sustainability. “As our society faces these increasingly complex challenges, Dow is proud to be part of the solution – putting our science and technology expertise to work to deliver real, high-impact innovations in these essential areas for society.”
To be selected, each of Dow’s breakthrough technologies – Omega-9 Oils, DOW FILMTEC™ ECO Reserve Osmosis Elements and, now, BETAMATE Structural Adhesives – were subjected to a rigorous evaluation process. The process evaluates many candidates in Dow’s R&D pipeline against a variety of criteria, from positive impact on millions of human lives, to minimal environmental impact throughout the product’s lifecycle. Overall, breakthroughs are selected based on their significant contributions to society over the long term.
According to Ross McLean, President, Dow Africa, Dow sees Africa as crucial to the company’s future growth and business success. He says, “We are proud that our solutions have been part of Africa’s growth over the last 50 years. We’re passionate about combining the power of science and technology to create sustainable solutions that forward human progress. These milestones are proof of this commitment in action.”
Click on the link to learn more about the solutions – What makes a breakthrough?
BETAMATE™ Structural Adhesives
A challenge of down-gauging incumbent steel structures and using lighter weight materials like aluminium and composites in vehicles to enhance fuel efficiency is maintaining the strength of the vehicle structure. BETAMATE Structural Adhesives are an enabling technology for optimized steel structures and dissimilar material assembly, where traditional joining techniques such as welding and riveting are limited in their applicability.
The latest Dow ‘breakthrough’ technology and recent recipient of a 2014 R&D 100 Award and two 2014 PACE Awards, BETAMATE Structural Adhesives are used to bond the body structure of automobiles during assembly. This enables BETAMATE™ Adhesives to improve vehicle safety and durability while optimizing weight reduction and providing greater design flexibility.
“BETAMATE Structural Adhesives address energy and climate change, as well as safety and health – two of the pressing world challenges that Dow has committed to help solve as a part of the 2015 Sustainability Goals,” said Steve Henderson, president of Dow Automotive Systems. “Since their introduction in 1999, BETAMATE Adhesives have already contributed to an estimated 23.3 billion kilograms (kg) of CO2 avoidance and 2.65 billion gallons of gasoline savings.”
“As customers around the world purchase more fuel-efficient vehicles and more rigorous emission standards are implemented, sustainability has increasingly come to the forefront as a key consideration in vehicle design and production,” Hawkins added. “BETAMATE Structural Adhesives are a game-changer for lightweight vehicle assembly, using existing manufacturing processes to improve fuel efficiency and reduce emissions.”
Structural adhesives also enable increased load-bearing capability and improved static and dynamic stiffness, leading to improved safety and crash behaviour, reduced vibrations and noise, optimized ride, excellent driving and handling, and enhance durability for extended vehicle life span and long-term value.
DOW FILMTEC™ ECO Reserve Osmosis (RO) Elements
With large-scale, positive sustainability impact, Dow named FILMTEC™ ECO RO Elements as its second breakthrough technology this March. FILMTEC ECO Elements are a breakthrough in polymer chemistry that surpasses the last three decades of incremental change in RO technology, representing some of the most advanced water purification science available today designed to help fight global water scarcity. The technology has also won Edison and R&D 100 Awards.
Delivering 40 percent better purification with 30 percent less energy in industrial operations, Dow anticipates that as the new technology is adopted it will deliver trillions of metric tons of clean water, billions of kilowatt-hours (kWh) of energy savings, and reduce CO2 emissions by more than a million metric tons in its first 10 years of use alone.
Omega-9 Oils
Named in 2012, Dow’s first Breakthroughs to World Challenges – Omega-9 Oils – play a critical role in enhancing nutrition and lifestyle. While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has required food labelling of trans fats since 2006, many processed foods still contain unhealthy levels of trans fats and high levels of saturated fat. Nutrition experts correlate these trans and saturated fats in diets as contributing to increased risk of heart disease and Type 2 diabetes.
Derived from Dow’s NEXERA™ Canola and Sunflower Seeds, Omega-9 Oils have zero trans fat and are among the lowest in saturated fat. Since 2005, the use of Omega-9 Oils has eliminated more than 1.5 billion pounds of trans and saturated fat from the North American diet. Omega-9 Oil is widely used across the food service and packaged foods industries.
