Toray Industries Inc. (TYO:3402) has announced that it will establish development facilities for an innovative process that produces next-generation high-performance carbon fiber. The new facilities will be built on the premises of Toray’s plant in Matsumae, Ehime Prefecture. With these facilities, the company aims to develop the strongest carbon fiber in the world – surpassing...
Innovation
FBRI to Offer First K Computer-Based Software for Aiding Drug Discovery
The Foundation for Biomedical Research and Innovation (FBRI) is expected within fiscal 2017 to provide the first drug discovery calculation software through Japan’s K computer. To be provided on a fee basis, the software takes advantage of the calculating power of the supercomputer to achieve high-affinity binding in pursuit of greater operability. The software is...
Okayama University Venture Pioneers Technology for Mass Production of Graphene Oxide
Okayama University venture business Nisina Materials Co. Ltd. recently announced that it is seeking to enable the mass production of graphene oxide. As part of this initiative, the company will enter into negotiations with several large chemical companies in Japan. Nisina Materials aims to use its self-developed technology, which ensures reproducible and safe mass production...
Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma to Use Petrochemical Manufacturing Techniques for Continuous Drug Production
Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corp. (TYO:4508), a member of the Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Group, hopes to make the continuous production of pharmaceuticals a practical endeavor. There are few cases of continuous production working properly in the pharmaceutical industry, but the method is in widespread use in petrochemicals. Mitsubishi Tanabe will apply manufacturing techniques developed in the...
Toyota Boshoku Dramatically Improves Shock Resistance of Polypropylene in Vehicle Interiors
Toyota Boshoku Corp. (TYO:3116) is exploring applications for a plastic alloy with some of the best impact strength in the world. The material was developed in collaboration with Toyota Central R&D Labs Inc. Toyota Boshoku is marketing the plastic alloy as an impact strength material to dramatically improve the shock resistance of polypropylene (PP). The...
Hitachi Accelerates Pace of Development with Materials Informatics
Hitachi Ltd. (TYO:6501) is digitizing materials development. The company is focused on materials informatics (MI) to estimate and simulate material compositions that perform functions for applications in big data and computing power. As shorter product life cycles have resulted from intensified competition, 10-year R&D projects are no longer possible. To keep pace, Hitachi plans to...
Materials Startup JMTC Establishes Venture Fund With Asahi Glass, Mitsui Chemicals
Japan Material Technologies Corp. (JMTC) has teamed up with Asahi Glass Co. Ltd. (TYO:5201) and Mitsui Chemicals Inc. (TYO:4183) on an investment fund to support manufacturing ventures. The fund will be managed by wholly owned subsidiary JMTC Capital, with both Asahi Glass and Mitsui Chemicals contributing. In addition to providing funding, Asahi Glass and Mitsui...
Data Storage Market to Reach $9B by 2020, IDC Study Predicts
Demand for data storage media is increasing, according to market research by U.S.-based International Data Corp. (IDC). Due to the popularization of IoT, high-resolution video, big-data analysis and cloud services, the company expects a total worldwide data generation of 44 zettabytes and a storage device market of 1 trillion yen ($9.03 billion) by 2020. Manufacturers...
Showa Denko to Provide Hydrogen Fuel Derived From Waste Plastic
Showa Denko KK (TYO:4004) announced on August 1 that it will provide low-carbon hydrogen to power fuel cell vehicles (FCVs). Tomoe Shokai Co. Ltd., a major supplier of industrial gas, began providing the fuel in July at the newly established Shinsuna Hydrogen Station it operates in Koto-ku Ward, Tokyo. It is the first fuel station...
Joled Makes OLED Printing Technology Possible for All Display Sizes
Joled Inc.’s Yoneharu Takubo recently served as a guest speaker at the 33rd IHS Display Japan Forum held in Tokyo by London-based IHS Markit Ltd. Held on July 27, the event served as a platform for the Joled representative director to talk about the company’s organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display printing system. Unlike the competing...
AIST Unravels Structure of Basic Building Block of Glass, Silicone
The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) has clarified the structure of the basic unit from which glass and silicone are formed. While the molecular structure of the substance, orthosilicic acid, had already been determined, its precise structure remained shrouded in mystery, as the substance is extremely unstable. AIST recently succeeded in...
Riken Synthesizes High Molecular Weight Polar Polyolefins With Rare Earth Metal Catalyst
A research group from Riken, the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, has developed a copolymerization technology that efficiently incorporates polar groups into polyolefins. High molecular weight polar polyolefins can be synthesized using a rare earth metal catalyst to copolymerize alpha-olefin (polar monomer) and ethylene (nonpolar monomer) in an arbitrary mixing ratio. Ordinary polyolefins do...
CiRA Builds iPS Cell Stock, Targets 30% Coverage for Japan’s Population
The Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA) at Kyoto University expects to expand its stock of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells enough to cover around 30 percent of the Japanese population sometime during fiscal 2017. The cells are provided through CiRA’s iPS Cell Stock for Regenerative Medicine project, which produces iPS cells from...
Osaka University Researchers Eliminate Need for Anti-Reflective Coating in Solar Cells
A research group from the Institute of Scientific and Industrial Research at Osaka University has developed a method of shaping silicon wafers with low reflectivity via a simple solution treatment. Using crystalline silicon photovoltaics (PV) with a simple structure and no need for anti-reflective coating, the wafers achieve a conversion efficiency of 20 percent. This...
Sumitomo Chemical Works on New Liquid Crystal Polymer for High-Frequency Devices
Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd. (TYO:4005) is targeting an early market launch for a new liquid crystal polymer (LCP) suited to high-frequency devices. Suppressing the dielectric dissipation factor to a level of 0.001, the LCP promises to significantly reduce transmission loss. Sumitomo Chemical plans to supply the LCP in the form of a compound for electrical...
Microwave Chemical Set to Shake up Chemical Plant Stereotypes – Part 2
An Osaka University startup that has brought the power behind microwave ovens into the world of chemistry, Microwave Chemical Co. Ltd.’s manufacturing process is attracting considerable attention at home and abroad. Producing high-quality materials with less environmental burden than conventional techniques, the startup has already formed tie-ups with other companies. The synthesis of nanoparticles in...
Gifu Plastic to Target Teccell Honeycomb Core Material to Aviation and Other Industries
Gifu Plastic Industry Co. Ltd. is working to apply its Teccell lightweight, high-strength resin honeycomb core material to aircraft. The company revealed it has been conducting joint research for several years with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and IHI Corp. (TYO:7013) on using the porous Saint honeycomb silencer on aircraft engines. Saint uses Teccell...
Microwave Chemical Set to Shake up Chemical Plant Stereotypes – Part 1
Microwave Chemical Co. Ltd. is an Osaka University startup that has brought the power behind microwave ovens into the world of chemistry. The firm’s manufacturing process is attracting considerable attention at home and abroad, as it produces high-quality materials with less environmental burden than conventional techniques. Based in Suita, Osaka Prefecture, the startup has already...
China Seeks to Become Powerhouse for Smart Cars – Part 2
China is in hot pursuit of next-generation car development, with not only automakers rushing to develop the next generation of smart cars but the information and communications technology (ICT) sector as well. And now also trying to cut their way in on the action are European and U.S. auto parts manufacturers. Germany’s Continental AG entered...
China Seeks to Become Powerhouse for Smart Cars – Part 1
The Chinese market is in fervor at present over next-generation car development. Industry, academia and government are stepping up in unison to bring into reality smart cars, including electric and other eco-friendly vehicles, autonomous driving and the internet-connected car. So how should chemical and materials companies approach these trends? We decided to follow the action...
