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Whilst it is easy to define a chemicals trader as simply a salesman, the role is in fact a blend of scientist, entrepreneur and merchant. This combination requires a wide range of skills and a good understanding of economics, business, people, and of course, chemistry.

It makes the role well paid, when compared to other sales positions, but in an increasingly crowded marketplace, also makes for a stressful, target centred occupation, where you are only as good as your last deal.

So what qualities does a successful chemicals trader need?

1. Combining Chemistry and Business

According to the American Chemical Society, two-thirds of marketers in the chemical industry have a technical degree. Fifteen years ago this was not the case, but the situation has now changed due to the increasingly technical nature of the industry.

Ken Christy is general manager for specialities at Olin Chemical, and is typical of many chemical traders in being educated in both chemistry and business.

“I was nine months away from getting my Ph.D. when I decided I didn’t want to work in a lab,” says Ken. Instead of completing his doctorate, Christy changed subjects to business administration (M.B.A.) and now has a successful career in sales and marketing.

2. Understanding People

Dante Rutstrom is business manager for cosmetics and personal care at Eastman. He understands fully the importance of understanding customer needs. He was drawn into sales when realizing how well-suited he was at the more social side of marketing. Originally he was using his Ph.D in electroanalytical chemistry for research in the lab, but felt increasingly that he was detached from the real world. “There’s a likelihood I’ll go back to research, “he says, “and if I do, I’ll have a better understanding of customer needs.”

Zivile Jech, division vice president at Nalco Chemical, also worked in research before switching to sales. “It wasn’t that I didn’t like what I was doing. But I knew that in order to advance in my career, I needed more exposure to customers,” she says. “Having a background in chemistry gives me a real feel for what people do on both sides of the industry.” She currently works with both Nalco’s customers at petroleum companies, as well as with commodity chemical manufacturers who supply raw materials for Nalco’s products.

Her success is based on her understanding of both chemicals and people.

3. Adaptability

In the past, it was possible for companies to create products and then go out and find markets. Today’s industry is much more competitive and customer centric. This means that today’s products, sales and research is led more by customer need and that entails understanding markets. Even the best chemists can use an understanding of economics, as Rutstrom points out, “As chemists, we tend to overspecialize. That’s why it’s helpful to take business courses whenever you can.”

Like all businesses, the chemicals industry is increasingly global, so understanding more than one language will always be a benefit. Whilst French and German are useful in Europe, Chinese, Japanese or Russian are more useful than ever before as new markets develop worldwide.

4. Independence

In sales, individuals are given a product line and a territory. They spend most of their time travelling in their territory and going to sales conventions and trade shows. People with outgoing and social personalities are well suited to sales positions, but they must also be able to work independently.

Typically, a new employee in sales and marketing starts out in customer service or market research. Here, he or she will get exposure to how products are used and what the customers’ needs are. The progression up the career ladder is different at every company, but many sales and marketing representatives go through a series of jobs, including business evaluation, market development, sales, market management, and business management.

5. The Ability to See Trends

 Sales and marketing managers often link technical staff at a company with its customers, whilst at the same time trying to track trends in prices and predict the long-term needs of the market.

Alternatively, they can also work on specific product issues, liaising with clients on the functioning of set products and their development.

6. Self Motivation

Increasingly, chemical traders are being asked to work towards personal sales targets, often from their own homes, as companies reduce costs. There can also be a lot of travelling, either to visit customers or to trade shows and conventions. Whilst these events can give an individual the chance to prove him or herself it does require the ability to work alone and self motivate to reach goals.

      7. Education

 In the US about 60 percent of chemical sales personnel have university degrees in chemistry, and whilst this figure may be lower in other parts of the world, a good understanding of chemistry is more than helpful.

In fact a common route to becoming a chemicals trader is having a chemistry education and then adding business courses and adapting a skills base to meet new challenges, or as new products and markets develop.

Job Outlook

 The chemicals industry is experiencing a prolonged period of growth, such that many companies are now beginning to hire more chemicals traders, but the market is still very competitive. The life of a chemical trader is a combination of many things. One needs to be both scientific and business minded; practical and sociable; analytical and friendly. It can require years of hard work to climb the corporate ladder, leading you to work for huge multinational companies, and yet you will be singularly responsible for your results.

Overall, this rewarding work requires a full range of skills, most importantly the ability to bridge the technical and scientific sides with the business side.

The modern world needs plastics and polymers. From adhesive tape to zips to the device you are reading this article on now, plastics and polymers are all around us. We make hundreds of millions of tons of it every year, most of which are petroleum based. Their durability and long life is their greatest asset, but it is also their biggest problem. Most of the plastics we use will remain in landfills for years to come or litter the environment endangering both humans and wildlife alike. But maybe there is a solution, and one that could lead to big profits for the right investor. Maybe biodegradable or biobased plastics are that solution.

Biodegradable plastics and polymers have a key advantage over regular plastics and polymers in that they will break down over time, with minimal damage to the planet.

Whilst being environmentally-friendly is a helpful selling point, it doesn’t tell us if there is actually a market for biodegradable polymers or not. Can ‘plastics’ actually go green?

What types of plastics and polymers are there?

It is important to note that biobased does not equal biodegradable, as overall the market contains three main groups of products.

1.  Biobased or partly biobased non-biodegradable plastics such as biobased PE, PP, or PET (so-called drop-ins) and biobased technical performance polymers such as PTT or TPC-ET.
2. Plastics that are both biobased and biodegradable, such as PLA and PHA or PBS. PHA (Polyhydroxyalkanoate) is the fastest-growing biodegradable plastic driven by its high use in packaging, whilst PHA (Polyhydroxyalkanoate) is an aliphatic polyester produced via fermentation of carbon substrate within a microorganism.
3. Plastics that are based on fossil resources and are biodegradable, such as PBAT.

Industry sources expect that bio-based polymers such as bio-polyethylene will increase at a faster rate than biodegradable polymers because of factors such as the ‘drop-in’ ability that they have, as their production, use and disposal are similar to conventional petrochemical-based polymers.

As all substances degrade over time, it is important to follow set standards to avoid over using the phrase ‘bio-degradable’. These legal standards allow products to be labelled as “biobased carbon content” or “biobased mass content” and include EU standard CEN/TS 16137, the corresponding US-standard ASTM 6866 or international standards such as ISO17088.

What are biodegradable polymers?

If a polymer is to be considered biodegradable (compostable), the ‘greenest’ of polymers, it must meet three criteria:

1. Biodegradation – It has to break down into carbon dioxide, water and biomass at the same rate as food waste.
2. Disintegration – The plastic must become indistinguishable in the compost. This means they must be able to pass through a 2 mm sieve after 12 weeks.
3. Nontoxic – It must not poisonous after disintegrating.

Most international standards (such as ASTM D6400) require at least a 90% biodegradation of a product within 180 days, along with other factors, to be called compostable.

The two most important commercial biodegradable polymers in 2012 were polylactic acid (PLA) and starch-based polymers, accounting for about 47% and 41%, respectively, of total biodegradable polymer consumption. But there are other polymers in use, such as aliphatic/aromatic copolyesters or epsilon-caprolactone (also known as polycaprolactone), as well as cellulosic derivatives and polyhydroxy-alkanoates.

Who’s buying?

Plastics Business, which reports on the plastics industry estimates that, “In 2012, Europe was the dominant market for biodegradable polymers consuming 147 KMT or about 55 percent of world consumption; North America accounted for 29 percent and Asia approximately 16 percent.”

Packaging was the single-largest application of biodegradable plastics, with a market share of nearly 60% of the total demand in 2013. Increasing demand for PLA (polylactic acid) and PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoate) is driving the demand for biodegradable plastics.

And yet, the bioplastics industry accounts for only about 1% of the total global plastics market.

Whilst many may see this as proof of the lack of demand for such products, some investors see this merely as an opportunity for growth in a yet-to-be-realised market. Certainly, many industry experts predict growth, including renowned market research team Markets and Markets, who state that, “[the] Biodegradable Plastic Packaging Market [will be] worth US$8,415 Million by 2019.”

That is growth in excess of 10% worldwide in less than 4 years, which makes investment in this field an interesting prospect. This is especially true in certain areas, as researchers at Future Market Insights state that, “the bio-based biodegradable plastics market in Latin America is expected to demonstrate the highest growth rate (22.6%) followed by Asia Pacific (20.7%).”

What’s stopping even bigger growth?

These rates may seem amazing, but they are small in comparison to what they would be if the market can overcome its biggest obstacle: a lack of composting infrastructure.

According to the Dartmouth Journal of Science, ‘the last obstacle to surmount is the proper disposal of biodegradable plastics. In order for biodegradable plastics to be effectively disposed of, the current waste management infrastructure must change.”

Recently, Western European countries have led the way in developing such an infrastructure in an attempt to meet EU landfill reduction targets. Whilst in the United States, cities and local communities have continued to develop ways to make composting more accessible.

Legislation is a key market driver in this area, and includes a packaging waste directive to set recovery and recycling targets, a number of plastic bag bans, and other collection and waste disposal laws to avoid landfill. Consumer awareness of sustainable plastic solutions and pressure from retailers also contribute to the interest in reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel independence.

What are bioplastics used for?

The market for biodegradable plastics has a wide range of possibilities for growth, in areas as diverse as the medical industry (tissue engineering, wound healing, and drug delivery) or drinks bottles that are commonly made with partially bio-based polyester PET.

But packaging is the biggest single use of biodegradable plastics and is projected to be worth US$2,007 million by 2019.

Who’s investing now?

There are a number of firms, both large and small, who have begun to invest in the field of bio-plastics and polymers. Among these the major players are:

NatureWorks LLC (U.S.), Novamont S.p.A. (Italy), Plantic Technologies Ltd. (Australia), Synbra Technology bv (Netherlands), Meredian Inc. (U.S.), Tianjin Green Bio Science Ltd (China), Bio-On Srl (Italy), Corbion nv (Netherlands), Mitushbhi Chemical Corporation (Japan), Metabolix Inc. (U.S.), BASF SE (Germany), Bioome Technology PLC (U.K.) and Innovia Films Ltd. (U.K.). BASF markets a product called Ecovio® which is a blend of the company’s biodegradable plastic Ecoflex® and PLA. An application for this biodegradable material is for thin plastic films such as shopping bags or rubbish bags.

What now?

This will be a growth market, according to a report entitled, ‘Biodegradable Polymers: Past, Present, and Future’ by The Society for Engineering in Agriculture, Food and Biological Systems. Who states that, “There are a seemingly limitless number of areas where biodegradable polymer materials may find use. The sectors of agriculture, automotives, medicine, and packaging all require environmentally friendly polymers. Because the level of biodegradation may be tailored to a specific need, each industry is able to create its own ideal material. The various modes of biodegradation are also a key advantage of such materials, because disposal methods may be tailored to industry specifications. Environmental responsibility is constantly increasing in importance to both consumers and industry.”

There is certainly an appeal to invest in biobased and biodegradable plastics on an environmental level, and with increasing uncertainty in the price of oil, a more stable way to furnish our world seems like an easy choice. Indeed, most countries now have governments who are supporting the use of greener materials or are imposing higher costs for the disposal of fossil fuel based substances. However, whilst any new project carries with it an amount of risk, steps into newer markets such as greener plastics require careful consideration. But then what wise investment doesn’t?

The best thing about working in the field of chemistry is the sense of being on the cutting edge of something. A science that is vital to life and touches so many areas of other industries; energy, manufacturing, food stuffs, agriculture. The world around us relies on chemistry.

As a science, it is full of exploration and research into the unknown, something that is never felt by those working in banking, advertising or insurance. The new discoveries of today, are new markets for traders and businessmen in the chemicals’ industry of the future.

Which is why it is worth taking a look at what breakthroughs have been made over the past year. These exciting developments give all of us the buzz we yearn for in life. Something that few occupations have. As Melissa A. Hines, director of Cornell University’s Center for Materials said earlier in the year, “In all honesty, I decided to become a chemist right after I found out that I couldn’t become a cowboy.”

So here are the top 4 chemical breakthroughs of the last 18 months.

1. Batteries

Much research has been done in the field of batteries these past few years. Anyone with a mobile or laptop will tell you how the energy never lasts long enough and that the battery is always too big or too heavy, whilst environmentalists remind us how incorrect disposal of mercury or lithium batteries can effect us all for years to come.

Maybe these problems will soon be a thing of the past, because scientists at Virginia Tech have developed a bio-battery that runs on sugar. It is claimed that they hold twice the power of a lithium battery and using a new enzymatic route to remove electrons from sugar, can create energy from maltodextrin. They can even be recharged by simply adding more sugar.

Another development has lithium-ion batteries that can be physically stretched out by up to 600%, enabling them to be woven into cloth. This was achieved by using carbon nanotube-lithium “yarns” wound onto an elastomer base, which was then covered with a layer of gel electrolyte.

2. Medicine

In the medical world, scientists have developed an artificial skin that wraps around a prosthetic limb, giving the user the sensation of pressure and heat. This has been achieved with flexible sensors that send signals directly to the wearer’s brain.

Meanwhile the Scripps Research Institute has been able to turn cells into ‘drug manufacturing centres’.

Normally, large molecules cannot cross the blood-brain barrier, resulting in the use of medicines based on smaller, but less effective, molecules. To overcome this limitation, researchers added small molecules to a diseased living cell with the intention to change the defect on a molecular level. Using a method known as “click chemistry”, these molecule-cell combinations are 1,000 times more potent than the small molecule itself.

3. Greenhouse Gases

The US department of agriculture released a report detailing the most accurate calculations for quantifying greenhouse gases in different locations (prairies, rainforest, tundra etc). Whilst the evidence presented was not ground-breaking in itself, the report is the most up-to-date and non-researcher friendly of its kind, and is sure to assist future studies.

Meanwhile, a team from the University of Houston has developed a molecule that can ‘eat’ greenhouse gases.  This molecule can adopt a porous structure able to bind to several hazardous gases that are present in the atmosphere. This is basically a “big ball” covered with pores lined with fluorine atoms. This then gives it an affinity or attraction for other fluorine-based compounds, such as fluorocarbons. Crucially, the weak bonds of this molecule can then be reversed or recycled.

4. New Materials

The discovery of graphine, a material with the thickness of a single molecule, and its countless possible applications was big news in previous years, but now the science behind its creation has inspired further ‘2D’ materials.

These include phosphorene, developed from phosphurus by a team at Purdue University in America. They were able to exfoliate black phosphurus in a similar way that graphine is exfoliated from graphite. The researchers claim that phosphorene has better electrical conductor properties than graphene.

Silicene has been developed from silicon, germenen from germanium and arsenene from arsenic, all with varying properties, but all strong and very, very, very thin.

Whilst all of these breakthroughs leave us standing in amazement at what the future will bring, they also leave us asking ourselves in what ways can we further develop, market or profit from these advances. That said, it is also worth remembering what Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla cars said earlier in the year.

“It’s remarkable how many so-called breakthroughs you read about that turn out to be nonsense.”