Organic peroxides are used as fine chemical intermediates. Arkema's Organic Peroxides division produces and markets organic peroxides for the following applications:

Composites:
Curing of Unsaturated Polyester Resins (UPR)
Luperox^® organic peroxide products are used for hot and cold curing of unsaturated polyester resins. In the polyester processing industry, they are particularly used in the building, transportation and leisure sectors. The range of unsaturated polyester resin hardeners primarily consists of ketone peroxides, peresters, perketals and benzoyl peroxides.

Crosslinking (XL):
In crosslinking applications, organic peroxide products act on the polymer itself, not the initial monomer.  It “builds bridges” between the polymer chains to improve the mechanical properties and heat resistance of the product.

Arkema has over 50 years of experience in manufacturing organic peroxides.  Some of our products were the first commercially available to combine high efficiency and thermal stability with good vulcanizing properties at a low cost.  These products include organic peroxides sold under the Luperox^®, Di-Cup^®, Vul-Cup^®, and Link-Cup^® tradenames as well as Liqua-Cup^® hydroperoxides and liquid organic peroxides.  We also offer a non-organic peroxide based line of vulcanizing agents sold under the ECHO^® tradename.

The main market applications in this sector are cable and wire manufacturing, industrial and mechanical rubber products for the automobile, construction and footwear industries, and the plastics industry for viscosity and molecular weight control.

Polymer Initiators:
Luperox^®organic peroxides are radical polymerization initiators for commodity polymers' such as polystyrene and styrenic copolymers (SAN, ABS, SBR), PVC, low-density polyethylene and acrylics. They act directly on the monomer during polymerization. Some grades of Luperox^® are also used to alter the rheology (deformation and flow) of polypropylene to make it more fluid and easier to process.