Basic Technologies
Technology Strengths
At Soken, we leverage polymer design technology and process design engineering to support a wide array of customer needs which enable us to give rise to emergent technologies and offer new products and services. For example, we have been able to commercialize our pressure-sensitive adhesives by combining polymerization techniques and precision technology with heat removal, agitation, and microfiltration technologies. By combining multiple technologies, we continue to provide customers with high value-added products and services.
Polymerization Technology
In addition to polymerization reactions using organic solvents, we utilize a wide variety of polymerization technologies that employ different reaction environments, including aqueous and bulk. We use these diverse methods to produce a large number of polymer products including pressure-sensitive adhesives, performance materials, and fine particles as well as various specially coated products. We are also working on acquiring new polymerization reaction technologies to utilize in the development of high-performance products with low environmental impact.
Fine-Tuning Techniques
We are continuing to develop higher value-added products by designing and producing polymer materials with precise control over molecular structure, molecular weight, molecular weight distribution, and particle size parameters. Analyses to ensure products are fine-tuned to design specifications are crucial, and as such, we possess all of the technologies required to perform these comprehensive analyses in-house.
Combined Technologies
One effective means of quickly responding to increasingly sophisticated and diverse customer demands is to combine different materials with new technologies. Adding value in this manner comes down not only to material selection, but also advanced techniques such as mixing methodology and structure control. We are continuing to research more complex technology combinations to build upon our already vast wealth of knowledge and experience attained through many years of development.
Blend Adjustment Technology
We use our unique formulation technology to make blend adjustments that result in optimal products after taking into consideration the customer's usage environment, production stability, and long-term shelf life. Resins, solvents, and other additives each possess distinct characteristics and compatibilities. Thus, having the expertise to balance these elements is essential to eliciting the desired performance.
Analysis Evaluation Techniques
We have a variety of analytical testing facilities, a wealth of highly specialized analytical personnel, and a thorough analytical evaluation system. In addition to ample experience cultivated over many years, we are developing and incorporating the latest measurement analysis techniques which help to streamline more advanced research and product creation while improving response speed and product quality.
Heat Removal and Agitation Technology
Uniform mixing and agitation are essential for a chemical reaction to proceed efficiently. We have developed our own Hi-F Mixer, a wide-range viscosity mixer, to ensure high-quality, stable production of both high-viscosity products and products that undergo large fluctuations in viscosity during production. This mixer has very high heat removal efficiency so that it can effectively mix high-viscosity products.
Scalability Techniques
The Soken Group's production follows a batch process in which production is carried out in reaction pots from raw material to finished product. From lab scale to industrial scale (over 10 tons), we employ production technologies that can obtain the same quality regardless of the capacity and size of the reaction pot. We accomplish this using independently developed advanced techniques including reaction management by exact temperature control, precise control of agitation, and others.
Microfiltration Technology
Microfiltration in the high-viscosity range is achieved by Soken's unique filtration control technology. Product contamination can lead to defects within our customers' production lines. As such, general use products notwithstanding, for high value-added products that require the highest level of quality, we implement meticulous filtration processes to eliminate even the smallest impurities.
Coating Technology
Adhesive tapes are produced by coating substrates such as paper, films, and non-woven fabrics with pressure-sensitive adhesives. Materials and adhesives must be selected according to the type of tape and required performance, and it is critical to uniformly control the coating speed and thickness and prevent any contamination from foreign substances—a process that demands sophisticated techniques. At Soken, we possess a wide range of technologies from thick special coatings to versatile general-purpose applications.
Clean Environment Technology
Liquid waste such as cleaning solvents discharged during production are recycled and reused using our unique recycling technology, and we are continually working toward further reducing our environmental impact.
Powder Production Technology
We have equipment capable of producing a wide range of products with particle sizes ranging from submicron to several hundred microns, and particle size distributions ranging from monodispersed to polydispersed. The production process for these fine particles includes polymerization, purification, dehydration, drying, crushing, and classification. Each of these stages have specialized production techniques associated with them.