Evonik Resumes Full Production of Nylon 12

Germany’s Evonik Industries (in the U.S., Evonik Degussa Corp., Parsippany, N.J.) has resumed full operation of its reconstructed CDT (cyclododecatriene) feedstock plant at the Marl site, less than a year after it was destroyed by fire and explosion. That event precipitated a global shortage of nylon 12, which is based on CDT, and a flurry of activity to find acceptable substitutes for nylon 12 in automotive applications (see June ’12 Starting Up). According to Gregor Hetzke, president of Evonik’s Performance Polymers Business Unit, the plant is now producing, without any limitation, CDT and CDT-based Vestamid products, including nylon 12.