• In the search for a more sustainable binder, German carpet manufacturer Anker discovered the PVB from Shark Solutions, a Danish cleantech company focused on giving a new life to post-consumer PVB.

• Properties of the aviation carpet with PVB as binder are the same as those of traditional non-sustainable carpets.

• The market has been looking for this type of solutions for a long time and market introduction has already started.

• Anker will introduce well known and special developed styles of aviation carpets with PVB and plan to take out traditional non-sustainable aviation carpets stepwise as soon as possible.

• Shark’s PVB reuses laminated glass, from windshields and architectural /building glass that otherwise would go to landfill. The non-toxic binder (no chlorine or phthalates) is fully recyclable and this lives up to the future standards of t he industry.

Textile Innovater Devan Chemicals, known for its tailor-made flame retardant solutions, was called in to develop the flame retardant back coating, which is compliant with the Airbus and Boeing safety standards.

Dirk Vanpachtenbeke, R&D manager Flame Retardants at Devan:

“Based on many years of experience and competences in customer related developments, im proving recycling rates is getting more and more important. We are very proud that, together with Anker and Shark Solutions, we can contribute to this rising demand for products that meet the standards of a circular economy solution.”

In other news, Anker and Devan are already working on a new project, which includes Devan’s antimicrobial/viral-reducing technology. Recently, Devan published test results on the activity of their technology (BI-OME) against SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses. According to independent testing, BI-OME is proven to achieve 99 percent and higher virus reduction, including of SARS-CoV-2, on samples before washing and retains 98.5 percent even after 25 wash cycles.

This technology has been recognized with the 2020 European Technology Innovation Leadership Award by Frost & Sullivan.