Mitsui Chemicals Develops New Bio-based Building Material

Mitsui Chemicals announced a collaboration with Prime Polymer Co and Hide Kasuga 1896 Co. to develop a new bio-based building material.

The three partners created floor tiles made of Transwood and Prasus, a fully bio-based composite material that combines a cellulose microfiber compound with Prasus, a mass-balanced bio-polypropylene resin produced by Prime Polymer.

The new building material was selected as the floor material for the event facility of the World Expo Osaka, Kansai, Japan (Expo 2025), namely the National Day Pavilion of the Expo, which was designed by Akihisa Hirata Architects, among others.

As a result, Mitsui Chemicals decided to sponsor Expo 2025 by providing the 20,000 floor tiles (each with an area of 15 cm square) required for the Expo.

By providing these biomass-based floor tiles, Mitsui Chemicals aims to express its recognition of the Expo 2025 theme, “Designing Future Society for Our Lives,” and help ensure that the event reflects considerations towards achieving carbon neutrality and a circular economy.