• INDUSTRY & BUSINESS

Tylac enters tank cars at ILC's new plant

ILC Eyes Synthetics Market International Latex goes after more synthetics busi­ness with new plant and tailor-made products

V v iTH ITS NEW lO-million-pound unit on stream at Dover, Del., and a new research laboratory on the way, Inter­national Latex is plunging full tilt after a bigger slice of the synthetic latex market. Its hopes rest on the Tylacs, a new series of synthetic latexes.

Long known for its prowess in tailor­ing women's figures to fit the latest fashions with its Playtex girdles, ILC now tailors Tylac latexes to fit specific industrial applications. Especially singled out are textiles, paper, non-woven fabrics, leather finishing, and dipped goods, says ILC.

This custom tailoring is a primary feature of the Tylacs. A large propor­tion of synthetic rubber research dur­ing and after World II was directed toward dry rubber end uses. Latex applications took a back seat, and in general used latexes prepared either for coagulation to dry rubber or for gen­eral purpose use, explains ILC. But

since these latexes are used in a variety of fields, a compromise in properties is necessary. Not so with the Tylacs, which are modified to give the op­timum combination of properties for a specific end use, says International Latex.

t Technical Service. The new $1 million laboratory, slated for occupancy this fall, will allow expansion of present customer services in paper, textile, and coating applications. This will also complete the second phase of ILC's plans to boost latex business. Special­ists will work with latex users to de­velop modified latexes geared to their individual needs. Already ILC has 20 commercial Tylacs. Most of them are modified nitrile latexes, high in oil re­sistance.

Tailor-made for the paper industry are nine Tylacs which, ILC finds, show good affinity for cellulose along with a host of other desirable properties.

Commercial papers saturated with these emulsion polymers, the firm adds, show: high internal bond, improved wet strength (both at room tempera­ture and in boiling water), high elonga­tion, good tensile strength, and resist­ance to oils, greases, and solvents. Such papers go into masking-tape back­ing, labels, decorative papers, and other uses that involve pressure sensitive adhesives.

The rapidly growing tufted carpet field is another area in which ILC feels the Tylacs will aid manufacturers. Here certain Tylacs, when incorpo­rated into the carpet backing, elimi­nate the sulfur and organic accelerators needed to vulcanize most commercial latexes, and the problems that can re­sult from their use. These problems include: discoloration, nonreproduci-bility, pre-cure during shipping or stor­age, and the need for high temperature cure, says ILC.

International Latex finds that the Tylacs are shaping up well in non-woven fabric applications, too. Some nonwoven fabric uses are disposable clothing, industrial wiping cloths, and lapel fillers. •

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