Kraton Named Global Cooling Prize Finalist

HOUSTON, Nov. 15, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Kraton Corporation (NYSE: KRA), a leading global producer of styrenic block copolymers, specialty polymers and high-value performance products derived from pine wood pulping co-products, announces that it was selected as a Finalist for the Global Cooling Prize that was presented at the Finalist Award Ceremony on Friday, November 15 in New Delhi, India.

Kraton's entry is the NexarCool™ technology, a unique and innovative air conditioning redesign of the century-old evaporative cooling technology. By leveraging its Nexar™ copolymer with exceptional moisture transport properties, the newly-designed air conditioner (A/C) is expected to achieve high-energy efficiency without the use of a refrigerant. Kraton's collaborators for the Global Cooling Prize project include India Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB), Porus Lab and Infosys – all of which are located in India – with the assistance of Texas A&M University in the USA. Infosys is engaged for the computer modeling of the A/C's engineering and design.

"Kraton is proud to be part of a collective effort to solve the global cooling challenge," said Dr. Vijay Mhetar, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Kraton. "We are honored to be selected as a Finalist with our design, an innovative water-based, energy-efficient and affordable cooling technology that can make a positive difference for people around the globe."

The Global Cooling Prize is an innovation competition to identify a breakthrough residential cooling technology with five times less climate impact. The international competition is backed by Sir Richard Branson and the Indian government with a $3 million prize awarded over two years for a better A/C. The winning technology will receive at least $1 million. The prize is administered by Rocky Mountain Institute, Conservation X Labs, Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy and CEPT University. 

Out of 2,100 participant registrations – from innovators, start-ups, research institutes, universities and key A/C industry manufacturers – 445 teams submitted their preliminary ideas through the intent-to-apply form. About 139 teams from 31 countries followed through with their submission of the full detailed technical application. Finalists – including Kraton – received $200,000 to build prototypes, which will be tested in a lab that simulates the climate in different Indian cities.

About Kraton Corporation
Kraton Corporation (NYSE: KRA) is a leading global producer of styrenic block copolymers, specialty polymers and high-value performance products derived from pine wood pulping co-products. Kraton's polymers are used in a wide range of applications, including adhesives, coatings, consumer and personal care products, sealants and lubricants, medical, packaging, automotive, paving and roofing applications. As the largest global provider in the pine chemicals industry, the company's pine-based specialty products are sold into adhesive, road and construction and tire markets, and it produces and sells a broad range of performance chemicals into markets that include fuel additives, oilfield chemicals, coatings, metalworking fluids and lubricants, inks and mining. Kraton offers its products to a diverse customer base in numerous countries worldwide. Kraton and the Kraton logo are all trademarks of Kraton Corporation, or its subsidiaries or affiliates.

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SOURCE Kraton Corporation