U.S. company NaturalNano, Inc. has announced the success of its first commercial-scale trial of its naturally-occurring halloysite clay nanotube technology for improving the strength, ductility, and flexibility of plastics. The article says that the production of nanocomposite plastics has thus far been restricted by the need for large up-front investments, specialized equipment, and complex chemical processes. NaturalNano says that its test trial demonstrated that its technology operates well with conventional large-scale plastics manufacturing equipment. NaturalNano’s president Cathy Fleischer said, “We believe the market advantage of our additive is that it will allow composite manufacturers to produce affordable nanocomposite plastics for the first time.”
