����AV uses natural gas as a feedstock as well as an energy source. The partnership will enable the supply of natural gas sourced from INEOS’ global LNG portfolio, providing a stable and predictable feedstock and energy stream for ����AV’s European operations. This strategic collaboration addresses the critical need for secure and diversified energy sources in Europe.

David Bucknall CEO, INEOS Energy said: “Our goal is to supply customers with vital energy throughout the energy transition, not just at the end. That means maintaining competitive hydrocarbon supplies as alternatives emerge and grow. This long-term LNG deal with ����AV does exactly that, providing reliable, cost-effective energy to help our industrial partners manage volatility and avoid shortages."

Thorsten Dreier, Chief Technology Officer of ����AV, added, "Securing a stable, competitive and predictable gas supply is essential for our operations right now. This agreement with INEOS provides us with the long-term security we need to maintain our production and contribute to the European economy. We value INEOS' commitment to supporting European industry and their proactive approach to addressing the region's energy challenges. This contract is an important building block for us as a company in the energy intensive industry to transition towards an affordable renewable energy supply."

This agreement reinforces the shared goal of both companies to maintain a strong and competitive industrial base in Europe. By ensuring a reliable gas supply, INEOS and ����AV are taking real, tangible steps to secure the future of their European manufacturing assets.

INEOS first entered the LNG sector in June 2022, signing a 20-year agreement with US-based Sempra Infrastructure to supply 1.4 million tonnes of LNG annually from the US Gulf Coast.

"With our automated laboratory, we can work together with our customers on the future of coatings and adhesives. Because it operates almost completely autonomously and learns from our existing knowledge and data lake as well as newly generated data, it makes the process of optimizing and developing formulations many times more efficient and precise. This allows us to optimize existing formulations faster or even develop completely new formulations for and together with our customers. We can say: We are reaching a new level of modern research," says Thomas Büsgen, head of the laboratory.

Testing Formulations with ����AV Binders and Crosslinkers 

Specifically, the new laboratory will test formulations with ����AV binders and crosslinkers for coatings and adhesives. Their clever selection ensures properties such as hardness, adhesion, opacity, gloss, or durability. Such formulations typically consist of seven to 15 components, whose combination determines the properties of the final product. The resulting high number of possible combinations means that standard formulations are usually used. The new laboratory now enables more extensive test series, also thanks to the computer-aided design of test series and the use of automation.

"Our new automated laboratory gives us more possibilities for testing formulations. It relieves our specialized laboratories of their standard tasks and can analyze samples more systematically. This allows us to focus our expertise and experience even more on customer-specific topics or try approaches we couldn't have implemented otherwise," says Martin Merkens, Head of Sales & Market Development EMLA in ����AV's Coatings and Adhesives business entity. “This will particularly help us in the area of circular economy: Alternative raw materials, for example bio-based or recycled materials, can be tested faster and evaluated for their properties in the final product.”

Facility to Run Tens of Thousands of Tests Annually 

The new facility can operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The goal is to run tens of thousands of tests annually. This sets a new standard in terms of number, variety, precision, and testing speed. Another advantage: The automated laboratory generates a large amount of structured data. The knowledge about formulation possibilities and influencing factors thus will grow rapidly. The collected data, combined with measurement data from existing studies, is evaluated using special machine learning algorithms to further improve formulations. Artificial intelligence is also used to predict new experiments based on property goals and simultaneously verify them in the automated laboratory – creating a self-learning system.

In addition to formulating water- and solvent-based 1K and 2K systems, the automated laboratory also performs numerous material tests on the raw materials themselves, their formulations, and applied films. Application can even take place in different climates in the lab to simulate product use under application conditions. The progressing laboratory digitalization across ����AV also enables easy forwarding of generated samples to more specialized testing laboratories. This makes it possible to supplement the datasets with market-specific test results and identify relevant dependencies more quickly.

����AV at European Coatings Show 2025 in Nuremberg 

At the European Coatings Show from March 25-27 in Nuremberg, experts from application development and segments such as automotive, printing & packaging, or construction & architecture will be present to discuss new, joint approaches made possible by the laboratory with customers. Visit the company's booth in Hall 4A, Stand 438. There you can learn more about the laboratory and other innovative material solutions and technical developments for the coatings and adhesives industry.

Follow further updates on this topic . 

"The successful completion of this project shows that climate protection and competitiveness can go hand in hand," says Dr. Philip Bahke, Head of the North Rhine-Westphalia Site Network. "The modernized plant sets new standards in energy efficiency and underlines our path toward climate-neutral production. In light of persistently high energy costs, the project significantly strengthens the competitiveness of TDI production in Europe. My special thanks go to the entire project team, who professionally implemented this complex modernization during ongoing operations."

More Efficient Processes for More Sustainable Products

The modernized plant consumes 80 percent less energy than conventional processes, achieving a CO₂ reduction of 22,000 tons per year. This is made possible by a new reactor weighing over 150 tons (330,700 lbs) and almost 20 meters (65.6 feet) high, which uses the generated reaction energy for steam production. ����AV started the modernization in summer 2023. In total, the project installed over 3.5 kilometers of new pipelines, around 14 kilometers of cables, and hundreds of new equipment, valves, and monitoring instruments in the plant.

"In Dormagen, we operate Europe's largest TDI production plant. With the successful modernization, we can now offer our customers TDI with an even better carbon footprint," explains Dr. Christine Mendoza-Frohn, Head of Sales Performance Materials for the EMEA and LATAM regions. "This supports our customers in achieving their own sustainability goals and strengthens our position as a reliable partner for climate-neutral and circular solutions."

New Global Energy Efficiency Targets Presented

During the event, ����AV also presented its new, ambitious energy efficiency target for global production. The company targets a 20 percent reduction in CO₂ emissions from energy use per ton of product by 2030 compared to 2020, underlining the central importance of energy efficiency as a lever for achieving operational climate neutrality by 2035. The Dormagen TDI plant, with its annual capacity of 300,000 tons, serves as a prime example of the successful transformation of existing production facilities toward greater energy efficiency.

The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) has supported this modernization through its federal funding program for energy and resource efficiency.

Further press release:

• ����AV publishes energy efficiency target ›

“While the decision to shut down the PO11-unit is difficult, we must ensure all assets within our portfolio are a long-term strategic fit,” said Aaron Ledet, executive vice-president I&D and Supply Chain at LYB. “We are prioritizing our core assets which play a key role in our technology differentiation and circularity strategy or provide attractive returns over the cost of capital. We take our obligations towards our employees, European employee reps, councils, and unions seriously. We have engaged with them in line with these obligations and will continue to do so. We would like to thank them for the constructive dialogue. We are also in communication with customers, suppliers and other parties across the value chain and will continue to do business as usual. There is no change to our working relationship, and we continue to focus on providing an exceptional customer and supplier experience.”

"As part of our Sustainable Future corporate strategy, we’re continuously working to optimally position ����AV to be a reliable partner for our customers and to operate competitively in a challenging market environment," said Hermann-Josef Dörholt, Head of the Performance Materials Business Entity at ����AV. "Due to global overcapacities, persistently weak demand, and high costs in Europe, we have jointly decided with LYB to close the PO11 plant. We will support LYB in implementing this change as socially responsibly as possible. At the same time, we remain committed to the European market and will continue to supply customers with our renowned polyether polyols portfolio.”

The Maasvlakte site, a joint venture between LYB and ����AV, has been operational in the Rotterdam region since 2003. Between now and the end of 2026, LYB will carry out a process to safely shutdown and prepare the demolition of the asset.

In 2024, LYB announced a strategic review of European assets of its Olefins & Polyolefins (O&P) and Intermediates & Derivatives (I&D) business units. LYB has taken the next step in evaluating the option to seek alternative ownership for the O&P sites in the strategic assessment. At this time no decisions have been made and various outcomes remain possible.

The film documents the development of the innovative solar racing car “����AV Adelie” and the participation of the team of around 50 students in the Bridgestone Solar World Challenge 2023 in the Australian outback. Using state-of-the-art technology and innovative high-performance materials from ����AV, the students have designed an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly racing car. The solar racer paves the way for the development of environmentally friendly vehicle technologies.

From design to the race track

The documentary follows Team Sonnenwagen from the design of the “����AV Adelie” through to qualifying and then the race across Australia. In addition to the technical aspects of the racing car, the documentary also focuses on the emotions, challenges and tireless team spirit behind this ambitious project. In addition to the interviews with the dedicated students, numerous experts also have their say, including the renowned science journalist Ranga Yogeshwar, the Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Transport in NRW, Oliver Krischer, the former Opel boss and CEO of Continental, Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann, and Sucheta Govil from ����AV.

Available online on YouTube

“We are extremely proud that there is a documentary about our team and the great work of the past two years. This project is so important because it can play a small part in solving an important sustainability problem - greenhouse gas-neutral mobility,” says Sonnenwagen team leader Leonie Brandt.

The documentary “SONNENWAGEN - Future Mobility” will be available online on from August 27, 2024 at 6:15 p.m. The trailer is already available .

The first prize went to Isabel Payne, a Product Design Engineering student from the Glasgow School of Art. She created ‘SafiCase’ – a device for cleaning and steam sterilising re-usable menstrual cups using minimal water. The case is entirely self-powered, using a solar battery for the sterilising circuit. It is targeted at women who want something to use when they are nowhere near an electricity source or any running water. It is collapsible, so can be carried easily.

Chairman of judges, Richard Brown, said: “This is a great solution to safely clean a menstrual cup without power and to maintain hygiene. This product uniquely addresses the off-grid challenge and meets a very clear social need, not just for the traveller, but also, for example, displaced people. It was very well researched and is a worthy winner with a product idea that could be commercialised.”

Isabel said: “It means such a lot to have a platform for dealing with the issue of period poverty, which is rarely spoken about, despite affecting so many people worldwide and around 40 per cent of women in the UK. I hope this design helps bring awareness for reusable options and helps other people decide to invest time in designing more solutions, as there is very little innovation in this area.”

The judges awarded second place to Jake Lee (Product Design Engineering), also of Glasgow School of Art, for his product ‘SkinTemp’, a cold-water temperature sensor that alerts users to dangerous drops in body temperature. In third place was Glasgow School of Art’s Jem Mitchell, also a Product Design Engineering student, who produced ‘Sentree’, a solar powered sonic deterrent that protects trees from being overgrazed by animals such as deer.

Notes to editors
Established in 1985, Design Innovation in Plastics is the longest running student plastics design award in Europe. For more information visit .

The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) is a major UK engineering institution and is the professional body for the advancement of materials, minerals and mining to governments, industry, academia, the public and the professions. For more information visit .

The Worshipful ����AV of Horners is one of the oldest livery companies in the City of London, formed to regulate the horn-working trade. In 1943 it adopted its modern equivalent, the plastics industry. For more information visit .

Andrea Firenze, General Manager at ����AV Spain, said: "Commitment to sustainability is a non-negotiable part of everything we do, and this agreement allows us to take a further step in our mission to make energy use as efficient and sustainable as possible throughout our value chain. In the same way, through this alliance with bp, we will continue to promote the strategic positioning of our Tarragona site through a more stable, more predictable and, above all, more sustainable long-term energy supply." 

Jason Tate, head of European power trading and origination at bp, said: “This agreement highlights not just bp’s commitment to Spain. It’s an example of how bp is continuing to invest in developing our expertise and capability to support European commercial and industrial customers to help meet their decarbonization goals.” 

Under the terms of the power purchase agreement, bp has agreed to supply ����AV with a high double-digit GWh volume of renewable electricity for a period of 10 years, backed by an equivalent volume of Guarantees of Origin (GoO). The current plan is to source the renewable power from an already operational solar photovoltaic (PV) farm, in Teruel, in the Aragon region of eastern Spain, with which bp has an offtake agreement in place. 

����AV aims to convert its production to 100 percent renewable energy as part of its climate goals until the end of 2035. At the end of 2023, ����AV fulfilled approximately 16 percent of its global electricity needs from renewable sources. 

bp has been active in the Spanish natural gas market for more than 20 years, through management of their LNG portfolio, and supply to C&I customers. In the power and renewables space, bp manages a portfolio of solar offtake and also supplies renewable power, a key growth area for the bp trading business in Europe. 

*Estimate based on a calculation of Scope 2 market-based CO₂ emissions user may have had to report if buying the same amount of grey electricity from their current local supplier.

The Breakthrough Energy Catalyst foundation set up by Bill Gates and the European Investment Bank (EIB) are supporting this installation of the Rondo RHB100 heat battery, which is scheduled to begin operation at ����AV’s Brunsbüttel site at the end of 2026. The project will then produce ten percent of the steam required at the site, saving up to 13,000 tons of CO₂ emissions per year.

Rondo Heat Batteries combine century-old materials and cutting-edge automation to capture electricity and deliver high-temperature heat and power. Electrical energy is stored as heat, using bricks that have been used for heat storage at steel mills for centuries. The heat powers an ordinary boiler to deliver zero-emission steam. Renewable electricity can be intermittently stored when there is an excess available and a constant amount of steam can still be generated continuously.

"As an innovation company, we are always excited when we can further develop and test promising ideas that can bring us closer to our goals of a circular economy and climate-neutral production," says Dr. Thorsten Dreier, CTO of ����AV. “The heat battery is such an idea: a new technology that allows us to go one step further on our way to a sustainable future.”

“Rondo Heat Batteries deliver deep decarbonization by changing the fuel, not the factory,” said Eric Trusiewicz, CEO of Rondo Energy. “We’re honored to be working with ����AV to prove our safety, reliability, and efficiency under real conditions on a large scale over a long period of time. And we’re excited to be deploying in Brunsbüttel, where large flexible electricity loads are particularly valuable to the electricity grid.”

For ����AV, steam generation is an important part of the production process and accounts for a large proportion of energy consumption. The learnings from this first heat battery installation will provide experience and insights for ����AV to be able to assess whether larger-scale deployments are possible.

In addition to the reduced complexity of the new production process, the connection to the existing infrastructure in Antwerp with four production lines for polycarbonate also has an advantageous effect, as it combines global scale in production with the flexibility of a stand-alone unit.

"The new production process is the first and only one of its kind in the world and enables us to offer a broad portfolio of material innovations," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer at ����AV. "With the new plant, we can now produce and launch new polymer materials on an industrial scale much faster than before. This is the result of several years of development work by our research and process technology teams, as well as our long-term experience with polycarbonates. In our Solutions & Specialties segment, we focus on sophisticated products with a high pace of innovation, which is a key success factor since customer requirements change quickly. The new production line is a prime example of how we implement this strategy and support our customers to the best extent."

"Compared to pure polycarbonates, the copolymers open up new possibilites for us to integrate further functionalities and properties into our materials," explains Lily Wang, Global Head of the Engineering Plastics business unit. "These can range from improved mechanical properties, a higher resistance against chemical attack to an enhanced flame retardancy. By that, we can offer innovative materials that meet the high requirements of our customers in a wider range of applications. We will focus first on materials for the electrical, electronics and healthcare industries, while future innovations might focus on mobility and other trends." To understand its customers' needs, ����AV will showcase some of the products that could be produced with the new plant at the Chinaplas exhibition in Shanghai in April and looks forward to talking to customers about these innovative material solutions.

����AV is already making an important contribution to more sustainable vehicles and infrastructure with innovative material solutions. In this context, the company is also working in close partnership with Team Sonnenwagen, a team of around 50 students from RWTH Aachen University and Aachen University of Applied Sciences. It is dedicated to developing racing cars that are powered solely by the sun. ����AV shares the students' enthusiasm because the racing cars, with their high efficiency and use of new technologies and materials, are a powerful symbol of the mobility of the future. That is why ����AV is supporting the team as the main sponsor with material solutions and technical exchange for another two years.

"In order to create a climate-neutral and circular mobility of the future, business, politics and society must pull together. At ����AV, we are contributing to this transformation by offering the automotive industry raw materials based on biomass or recyclates and manufacturing our products as energy-efficiently and with as few emissions as possible," said Dr. Thorsten Dreier, Chief Technology Officer, during the discussion. "At ����AV, we want our production to be climate-neutral by 2035 and are relying on energy from renewable sources and innovative process technologies to achieve this."

����AV's material developments focus on solutions for the major trends of electromobility, autonomous driving and the need for individualization. These include material solutions for compact, powerful and safe batteries for electric cars and robust charging systems, plastics for connected mobility and the Internet of Things, as well as various products for aesthetic and functional automotive interiors and exteriors.

����AV has been supporting Team Sonnenwagen in the development of ever more efficient solar racing cars since 2017. The students are working together in a wide range of disciplines to improve the aerodynamics, optimize the chassis and install a particularly efficient photovoltaic system and battery. Participants at the NRW Mobility Day were able to take a look at the ����AV Photon, the predecessor model to the current Adelie racing car, and talk to team members. With the Photon, Team Sonnenwagen became European champion at the European solar race in Zolder, Belgium, in September 2022.

This site of Epurex Films, a wholly owned subsidiary of ����AV, houses research & development, application development and production for the semi-finished products. The company has invested a low double-digit million Euro amount in the expansion of the center of excellence for TPU-Films.

The new capacity is intended to meet the growing global demand for multilayer TPU films. They are used in automotive interiors and construction, among other applications. Breathable, water-impermeable specialty films have also proven their worth in wound care and outdoor clothing.

"With this capacity expansion, we are strengthening our Bomlitz site and our position as a leading supplier of technical specialty films," said Dr. Thorsten Dreier, ����AV's Chief Technology Officer, at the inauguration. "At the same time, we are investing in promising technologies and applications and creating new jobs."

For Aleta Richards, global head of the Specialty Films business entity, the expansion offers opportunities to respond even better to individual customer needs and offer more sustainable products. "For some time now, we have also been developing customer-specific solutions with films made from alternative raw materials, as we are also seeing increasing demand in this area. The development and production of partially biobased products is therefore to become a new focus at the Bomlitz site."

����AV is fully geared toward the circular economy and aims to become climate-neutral by 2035. In 2022 the Bomlitz site has switched its power supply completely to green electricity. Epurex Films is one of ����AV's three competence centers for specialty films in Germany, along with Leverkusen and Dormagen.

"With our multi-layered campaign, we are pursuing the goal of establishing contacts with many partners to advance the industry on its path to climate neutrality and the circular economy," explains Dr. Christian Haessler, one of the two project managers for K 2022 at ����AV. "This communicative 360° approach was also expressed in the motto of our appearance at K 2022, 'Crafting Connections With You'." The Red Dot label has established itself internationally as one of the most coveted seals of quality for good design.

Rüdiger Maeßen, CEO Europe at Uniplan, is equally positive: "The good co-creative collaboration and the innovative concept were fundamental to the success of this holistic campaign. Together with ����AV, we have driven the circular economy agenda in the industry by creating an authentic exchange on multiple channels. Therefore, we are even more pleased that the sustainable campaign approach not only convinced the global target audience, but also the jury of the Red Dot Award."

Creating connections with digital platform

In order to connect with target groups around the world at an early stage and offer them a holistic, long-term experience as a "home base," ����AV and Uniplan designed a digital event platform called "SPACE." It went live several months before the start of the trade show and provided information about planned activities at the booth and the company's major highlight topics:

• Crafting Circular Economy
• Crafting Electrification
• Crafting Sustainable Living
• Crafting Smart Designs

A stage for current trends

These Topic Clusters also formed the basis for the second pillar – the integrated STAGE booth concept. As the other ����AV project manager Dr. Christopher Stillings explains, "Not only the exhibits and topic clusters, but also the wide-ranging lecture program in the central Talks Arena were tailored to these topics. Inspiring guests from well-known companies and universities – all actors in their respective fields – captivated the audience with keynotes on current trends and technologies and during panel discussions. Not only booth visitors participated, but also viewers around the world who followed the live broadcasts via social media."

Another highlight is the Color Material Finish (CMF) Sample Library, a collection of plastic samples that makes materials visible and tangible. Part of Uniplan´s and ����AV's STAGE concept is that the booth – or parts of it – can be used repeatedly for further exhibitions. Sustainability aspects and the reduction of CO₂ emissions were also at the forefront in the selection of materials for the trade show appearance itself. The success proves both partners right: Thus, the quality of contacts was significantly improved compared to K 2019, and a positive response developed both externally and internally over a longer period of time.

Innovators in the spotlight

While innovative developments are showcased and (hopefully) get the attention they deserve, the researchers behind them are often not visible. In the video series "Meet The Innovators" ����AV gives a voice to some of them and their inventions – see the blog post. They were introduced to a larger audience at K 2022, but prominent guests continue to discuss important innovations and technologies in the "Meet The Innovators" livestream series.

Many inspiring encounters at K 2022 have already led to a large number of new partnerships, technologies and material solutions. They form a valuable basis for developments that ����AV plans to showcase at the next major trade show appearance at K 2025. The company's motto may be different then – but the message remains that partnerships are the key to achieving a climate-neutral and circular economy: "Crafting Connections With You".

A Red Dot Award rarely comes alone

Back in May 2023, ����AV and its partner Accesso Dynamics were honored with an award offered by Red Dot and Koelnmesse. At the furniture supplier trade show interzum 2023, they received the "Best of the Best" interzum Award for their technology. This technology, first presented at K 2022, enables products with complex but seamless shapes. The development also contributes to sustainability, as the products are partly made from bio-based raw materials, are repairable and can be mechanically recycled at the end of their useful life.

����AV and Uniplan were also nominated for the Heavent Award in the "Forum, Summit, Congress, Fair Award" category for their communication concept for K 2022. A total of 132 projects from event, experimental and live marketing agencies as well as companies and trade fair and congress organizers were submitted for this year's event competition.

"I am amazed by the increased efficiency and energy savings you achieve with each new car model," said Chief Technology Officer Dr. Thorsten Dreier in welcoming the guests. “The ����AV Adelie shows on a small scale what high-performance plastics can do for a sustainable future on a large scale. We are convinced that they are the key to sustainable mobility. That's why we are consistently driving forward material innovations and recycling solutions together with our partners in industry and science.”

Optimization through teamwork

Even during the two-year development period of the ����AV Adelie, the teamwork of around 50 students led to success: aerodynamics, electrical engineering, driving strategy, chassis, powertrain and structure interlock perfectly. More than 200,000 hours of calculations were required to optimize the exterior shape, plus 10,000 workshop hours for the body, and many more days for electrical and mechanical components and the development of the driving strategy.

"A lot of work, heart and soul and the concentrated experience from our three predecessor models have gone into the ����AV Adelie," confesses Clemens Odendahl, head of marketing at Team Sonnenwagen. "Now we hope to win the Challenger class, in which we are the only German team competing. There, it's all about performance and maximum energy efficiency."

Thanks to the optimizations, the structure of the new model weighs 16 percent less than that of its predecessor, the Photon, and the chassis even has 20 percent less weight. This improvement is also due to some ����AV materials, such as a battery cover made of the high-performance plastic polycarbonate and the construction of the seat shell with thermoplastic polyurethane. The Photon is also currently on campus and will remain there for some time.

More sustainable outfit

But the Aachen-based tinkerers are not only committed to more sustainability on the road – their official outfit was also produced using alternative raw materials with fewer petrochemical components. Both the shoes and the shorts were provided by ����AV's Chinese partner Huafeng. The two companies jointly developed a design for them using Huafeng's HAPTIC^® textile coating system, which is made with ����AV's partially bio-based Impranil^® CQ DLS/1 polyurethane dispersion.

����AV wishes Team Sonnenwagen every success and victory in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. This time, 42 teams from 23 countries are taking part in what is probably the toughest solar car race in the world. Under harsh climatic conditions, they have to master the more than 3,000-kilometer route from Darwin to Adelaide as quickly as possible, right across the Australian outback.

"For me, the Sonnenwagen is a powerful symbol of future mobility, because it shows us that we need to ask crucial questions about materials science and design on the way there," said Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer at ����AV, in her welcoming speech. "For me, the Sonnenwagen team are exemplary for creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. The students proved an impressive motivation and know-how to develop and optimize new ideas for solar-powered, light-weight electric vehicles."

Multidisciplinary team

As many as nine disciplines of the Aachen-based team were involved in the design: the chassis, aerodynamics, structure, electrical engineering, driving strategy, production, sponsorship, marketing and logistics departments. "Close and efficient cooperation between these areas is very important, because we want to compete in the Challenger class at the race, where the main focus is on performance and maximum energy efficiency," explains Lina Schwering, 1st Chairwoman of Team Sonnenwagen. "A lot of working time has gone into the Adelie, which we have invested alongside our studies and during our free time, and a lot of commitment and heart and soul."

In total, more than 50 teams from 24 countries are setting out on the more than 3,000-kilometer route from Darwin to Adelaide – right across the Australian outback. There, people and models are exposed to very harsh climatic conditions with high temperatures and strong UV exposure from the sun during the race, but also during the preceding test drives. In addition, the vehicle is subjected to strong mechanical stresses that can affect the efficiency and performance of the battery.

Innovative materials

"The Sonnenwagen team therefore needed a lot of support in selecting the materials," says Andreas Brandt, Head of Group Marketing and project sponsor at ����AV. "The new Sonnenwagen incorporates innovative products with different functionalities from various business segments, which are tested under track conditions."

For example, the aerodynamic outer shell was made from milled SikaBlock® polyurethane foam blocks from Sika, a long-standing partner of ����AV and another sponsor of Team Sonnenwagen. The Leverkusen-based company provided raw materials for this and advised the team on the implementation. The Sikaflex® sealants for the solar cells are also based on components from ����AV. Other examples include a plastic sheet made of polycarbonate for the battery enclosure and thermoplastic cushioning materials for the driver's seat trim.

"Pushing boundaries is what we at ����AV have in common with the young talents of Team Sonnenwagen," says Sucheta Govil, summarizing her message. "We push the boundaries of innovation in materials, driven by our commitment to sustainable mobility of the future. With our products and solutions, we materialize the circular economy."

"For me, the chemical industry is predestined for the use of AI because we have a lot of complex processes going on that cannot be described by fixed rules," says Walter Grüner, Head of IT & Digitalization at ����AV. "They are not suitable for automation. We rather need learning systems to which we grant a certain degree of decision-making autonomy. In doing so, we focus primarily on the development of systems that work in a complementary manner to humans and support their abilities."

With the introduction of AI in the chemical industry, questions about technical, operational and organizational implementation are also increasingly emerging. This includes, for example, the role of AI in decision-making, but also its implementation along value chains.

Artificial Intelligence – great opportunity for chemical industry

Under the motto "Shaping industrial change with AI", the participants exchanged in a generic way views on the following topics:

• AI system to assist decision making or as an autonomous decision-maker?
• AI awareness, literacy and capabilities
• Production technology vs. supply chain management: independent or joint optimization?
• Needs and requirements for external data generation (monitoring)?

"It is precisely the exchange across company boundaries that helps us a lot in the upcoming transformation because overall challenges become clearer," says Nils Janus, Global Head of Advanced Analytics at ����AV. "This increases efficiency and saves time."

Overall, there was agreement among the participants: Artificial intelligence offers great opportunities for the chemical industry. The new systems help to create a common ecosystem for cross-divisional production planning. It must be decided on a case-by-case basis and each company has to decide individually and independently how much autonomy these systems will be given. With regard to access to the systems, the participants saw a strong democratization of artificial intelligence. Companies could support employees in learning more about data and AI and bring them into contact with experts when it comes to the widespread use of AI solutions in the company. The generation and dissemination of ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) data are currently the biggest drivers for using external data sources. Here, all participants saw opportunities to intensify the use of external sources.

Digitalization drives sustainability

Digitalization is a key driver to improve sustainability and make the circular economy a reality. ����AV is focusing on more data-oriented corporate governance to drive digital transformation.

����AV is advancing the use of artificial intelligence (AI) both in its own company and in the chemical industry. To this end, the materials manufacturer is investigating how digital technologies can make processes more efficient and sustainable as part of several pilot projects across different divisions.

The R&D teams of Solar Coating Solutions booked their first successes back in 2005 with the development of a new and innovative anti-reflective coating, which could be used in different applications. Around 2010, however, the solar industry worldwide started to emerge and turned into a business opportunity with a huge market demand and growth potential. This was the trigger for the decision to build a dedicated production plant for solar glass coatings in the Netherlands, more specifically on the Brightlands Chemelot Campus in Geleen.

With the solar photovoltaic industry growing globally, the Solar Coatings Business also spread its wings and installed teams in China and in the US. Thanks to smart decision taking, to the expertise of its business development teams in the regions and to the excellent performance and quality of its solar glass coatings, the Netherlands’ plant today remains the largest independent producer outside China. Additionally, during the past ten years the solar glass coatings product portfolio developed from a ‘one fits all solution’ to a highly diversified offering.

Robert von Beulwitz, Managing Director of the Solar Coating Solution, explains: ʺToday we offer amongst others combined anti-reflective and anti-soiling coatings for modules used in desert environments, high power coatings for large utility scale solar parks and special aesthetic coatings for pitch black appearance of solar panels mounted on residential rooftops – mainly in the Netherlands. Our latest innovation being the development and commercialization of a retrofit coating application for older solar parcs. With the expansion of the industry and of our portfolio, we also saw our employee base rising and I would like to thank each and every one of these colleagues for the relentless efforts they deliver every day!ʺ

"All these different solar coating products were developed in the Netherlands by listening to end market requirements around the world. And all of them are produced by employees in our production facility on the Brightlands Campus in Geleen. I am very proud about this story with which – from the Netherlands – we empower solar energy and harvest more energy from the sunʺ, adds Aukje Doornbos, Managing Director of ����AV in the Netherlands.

"With this we have fully achieved the goal of developing a technology to chemically recycle these products and convert polyurethane into a high-quality recycled material," says Bart Haelterman, R&D Director at Recticel. "For the first time in history polyurethane is truly fitting into a circular economy." The European Union funded the PUReSmart project with six million euros over a four-year period under its Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (agreement No. 814543).

Building on the PUReSmart project, ����AV is working with partners from the waste management industry to drive the further development of flexible foam recycling through to industrial use. "Our goal is to turn waste into valuable raw materials and to anchor the principle of the circular economy in our company and along the value chain with our partners to achieve this," says Christine Mendoza-Frohn, Head of Performance Materials Sales EMEA & LATAM of ����AV. ʺThat’s why we make innovative recycling a priority. We call this ongoing Evolution of Recycling: Evocycle^® CQ. The first initiative of this kind is dedicated to the chemolysis of PU mattress foam and is called 'Evocycle^® CQ Mattress'. This underlines our willingness to further invest in this technology," says Mendoza-Frohn.

Raw materials in high yield and purity

Unlike other chemical processes for recycling PU flexible foam, the process does not use fossil-based polyol. It requires only the pre-sorted foam from mattress waste, a glycol and an additive. During chemolysis, the polyol and toluene diamine (TDA), the precursor to TDI, are recovered in high purity and yield. After reprocessing, they can be used again as often as required for the production of new PU flexible foams. This ensures a sustainable circular economy for PU flexible foam with a reduced CO₂ footprint.

The goal: an industrial value cycle

����AV's first initiative, Evocycle^® CQ Mattress, transforms end-of-life mattress foam directly back into its main building blocks, giving old foam a new life within an optimized circular system. The company aims to close the loop in the PU mattress industry by converting waste into valuable resources, reducing the use of fossil fuels and significantly lowering CO₂ emissions. However, there are still many steps to be taken before this vision becomes reality, especially with regard to upscaling the process.

The journey began for ����AV in 2019, leading to the start of a pilot plant at its Leverkusen site as early as 2021 to verify the positive laboratory results achieved to date. If the trials continue to be successful, the company plans to build a larger recycling plant to validate the technology in an industrial simulation environment.

However, an effective and cost-efficient supply of used PU mattresses is also crucial to building a circular economy. To achieve this, large quantities must be collected, broken down into individual components such as springs, textiles and foam parts, and the foam components pre-sorted according to purity and density. This can only succeed in close cooperation with partners – in this case in the recycling industry. ����AV is already cooperating on this with companies such as Interzero and Ecomaison (formerly Eco-mobilier).

����AV started working in the field of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites in 2015 with the acquisition of TCG Thermoplast Composite GmbH. Following the strategic decision to discontinue the Maezio^® product line after almost eight years, ����AV searched intensively for a buyer for the Markt Bibart site. As this attempt was ultimately not successful, ����AV decided to close the site later this year. Most recently, 48 of the approximately 7,600 employees in Germany were employed there. “We have initiated an extensive sales process, which, unfortunately, was not successful. Our focus on the ground is now on providing the best possible support to all colleagues. To this end, we will be working closely with the local employee representatives to find fair solutions for all those affected and to ensure that the closure process is socially responsible,” emphasizes Site Manager John Bauer.

A focus on core business

Thermoplastic fiber composites are a highly specialized and competitive niche business. ����AV has invested in building up the business since taking over the site in 2015 and has made very good technical progress in production. Nevertheless, the company has not succeed to scale business with sufficient success in the market. There are only a few synergies with the core business of the Engineering Plastics business entity and the vast majority of key account business. In addition, the typical customers for thermoplastic composites only order on the basis of joint, complex and time-consuming technical application development, and then only in very small quantities. This is in marked contrast to the far predominant distribution model and key account business in the ����AV Group.

����AV is thus sharpening its focus on its core Engineering Plastics business by discontinuing the Maezio^® products. Major customers in the automotive, electronics and healthcare divisions, among others, use these high-quality polycarbonates for further processing in a wide range of products.

"The joint project with ����AV is an important building block in making our entire value chain climate-neutral. By sourcing raw materials for these products with a significantly reduced carbon footprint, we will be able to reduce our reported indirect emissions by up to 120,000 metric tons of CO₂ equivalents per year," says Dr. Hubert Fink, member of the LANXESS Board of Management. With its Net Zero Value Chain Initiative, the specialty chemicals group plans to eliminate Scope 3 emissions within its upstream and downstream supply chain by 2050. This includes indirect emissions, particularly from purchased raw materials, but also in logistics or disposal. For Scope 1 and 2 emissions, the company aims to be climate neutral as early as 2040. "With this program, we are taking the next step towards a climate-neutral product portfolio and also supporting our customers, who are increasingly looking for sustainable solutions," says Fink. 

Chlorine, caustic soda and hydrogen are basic building blocks for many products in the chemical industry. However, their production is very energy-intensive. LANXESS uses the raw materials supplied by ����AV, for example, for products that are then used in the food and agricultural industries. ����AV produces the three basic raw materials at its North Rhine-Westphalian sites in Leverkusen, Krefeld-Uerdingen and Dormagen. Both the former have already been certified to the internationally recognized ISCC PLUS standard for the production of the strategic raw material chlorine, while this is also planned for Dormagen in the near future. The correct allocation of the electricity to the products is ensured via this certification and the use of the renewable energy is proven by the invalidation of certificates of origin at the Federal Environment Agency. 

����AV is also actively involved in various projects to build a hydrogen economy that uses mainly or exclusively green hydrogen as an energy carrier. Among other things, the company is supporting, in cooperation with Hydrogenious LOHC Technologies, to build the world's largest plant for storing renewable hydrogen in liquid organic carriers in Dormagen, Germany. 

With regard to its energy supply, ����AV focuses on power purchase agreements (PPAs) for renewable energy or high-level certificates. Only recently, the company signed PPAs with Chinese supplier CGN New Energy on wind and solar power that will cover around 30 percent of the electricity needs of its important production site in Shanghai. Under another, utility Ørsted will supply offshore wind energy starting in 2025, which is expected to meet 10 percent of the electricity needs of ����AV's sites in Germany. ENGIE, Belgium's largest renewable energy producer, will provide onshore wind energy to meet 45 percent of the electricity demand of ����AV's Antwerp production site in Belgium. 

Currently, two of its own ships and two additional chartered ships belong to Tailwind Shipping Lines. In addition to the non-food products from and for Lidl, Tailwind offers space on these ships also for interested companies. ����AV uses this now to also become more independent from the busy main routes and shipping companies and to increase the speed and punctuality of its own deliveries.

"Ocean shipments have been severely disrupted since the pandemic began, and the scheduling accuracy of large shipowners has fallen from 70 to 20 percent," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer at ����AV. "To increase our reliability and punctuality, we are therefore actively looking for alternatives. With Tailwind, we have found a partner to navigate the direct route from Asia to Europe with its ships - and who is therefore exactly where it helps us."

Smaller vessels, more flexibility and punctuality

The Tailwind ships have a capacity of around 5,000 "Twenty Foot Equivalent Units", or TEU, per month. TEU is a standard measure for shipping containers. Large ships from the big shipping companies can hold three to five times more. However, those mega ships can also only discharge at large ports and travel rather fixed routes with pre-determined stops, which increases the susceptibility to delays.

"We now determine the route ourselves. And because our ships are smaller, we can also have them sail to and discharge at smaller ports. This gives us a great advantage in terms of flexibility, speed and thus also punctuality," says Wolf Tiedemann, CEO of Sales, Logistics and Central Divisions of Lidl Stiftung & Co. KG. "This allows us to import our own goods reliably from Asia - but at the same time we still have room that we can offer. We are pleased to have found a first interested customer and partner with ����AV and hope to be able to expand the cooperation further and find other interested parties."

A first container of ����AV materials successfully completed the route from the company's largest production site near Shanghai to Europe. Currently ����AV ships a good 8,000 containers a year on that route alone. How many of these will be transported by Tailwind in the future is currently being negotiated.

Such achievement serves as a clear proof point of the company´s commitment towards circularity, leading the transition within the different segments served by ����AV not only in Brazil, but also in important countries such as Chile, Uruguay, Colombia, Argentina and Costa Rica, among others.

"This is an extremely important step for us as it makes the transformation towards the circular economy tangible, supporting our customers in achieving their sustainability goals and accelerating the substitution of fossil raw materials", says Andreas Stumpf, Managing Director of ����AV Brazil.

ISCC PLUS certification contributes to more sustainable production processes and markets, increasingly encouraging the participation of supply chain entities. At a local level, the certification can make fairer work relationships, more efficient processes and promote the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the use of fossil resources, while expanding the possibilities for the international market, mainly the European one.

"The Brazilian certification project of ����AV shows that it is possible to contribute to more sustainable production even in complex production chains with materials of different origins and destinations. It is another important step in promoting genuinely sustainable production chains", states Felipe Bottini, founding partner at Green Domus, ISCC recognized certification body in Brazil.

Customer focus: driving mindset change in Brazil

ISCC PLUS certification enables ����AV to supply attributed MDI and TDI, attributable to bio-based as well as bio-circular raw materials, to a variety of industries, for example for composites, flexible foams for mattresses and rigid foams for refrigerators, thus expanding ����AV's supply of more sustainable raw materials, which has a direct impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

"For us, it is of utmost importance to be at the side of our customers and enhance their awareness about climate neutrality. Now, with such products, we can effectively contribute to their sustainability goals and reduction in carbon footprint", says André Borba, Marketing and Sales Manager for the Performance Materials segment in the Latin America region.

In order to reflect this commitment, and to make it even clearer how these products support its circular vision as well as the customers´ path towards sustainability, ����AV created a distinctive branding for products driving circularity.

Products carrying the CQ suffix are produced using partially alternative raw materials today – such as feedstocks from waste, biomass or renewable energy. These material solutions can be implemented via segregated or mass-balanced chains of custody. By activating multiple circular production pathways, we enable clients to increase their use of renewable resources, and lowering their overall environmental impact.

The range of solutions carrying CQ will constantly grow. The first products available are the climate neutral³ products Desmodur^® CQ 44V70L MS and Desmodur^® CQ 44V20L MS from ����AV, as well its Desmodur^® CQ 44V70L MB, Desmodur^® CQ 44V20L MB and Desmodur^® CQ T80 with a significantly improved carbon footprint. The abbreviation ‘CQ’ stands for circular intelligence. Together, C and Q underline how essential thought-leading, innovative solutions can drive circularity forward.

¹ ISCC ("International Sustainability and Carbon Certification") is an internationally recognized system for sustainability certification of biomass and bioenergy, among others. The standard covers all stages of the value chain and is widely used worldwide. ISCC PLUS includes further certification options for technical-chemical applications, among others, including plastics from biomass.   
² Biological and bio-circular attributed MDI and TDI are assigned biological raw materials as well as wastes and residues of biological origin based on a mathematical algorithm using the mass balance method.   
³ Carbon neutrality is the result of an internal assessment of a partial product life cycle from raw material extraction (cradle) to the factory gate (����AV gate), also known as cradle-to-gate assessment. The methodology of our life cycle assessment is based on ISO standards 14040 and 14044.

"All our solutions under the umbrella CQ prove that we are continuing to work on making our vision of the circular economy a reality, to help customers and partners achieve their sustainability and climate goals. In this way, we also aim to meet consumer demands for more sustainable products," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer of ����AV. "And this is just the beginning. In the long term, ����AV also wants to offer every one of its products in a climate-neutral¹ version."

Evocycle^® CQ: a new name for all innovative recycling technologies and cycle designs of ����AV

Plastic waste is a valuable raw material and should not simply be disposed of. Therefore, ����AV is taking pride in proving that the path to circularity is possible for all stakeholders – and makes innovative recycling a priority. For the continuous evolution of recycling, the company now introduces the name "Evocycle^® CQ". It is an extension to the CQ label and stands for recycling technologies which enable the use of recycled plastics and recycled raw materials from the ����AV portfolio within a streamlined closed-loop system.

What’s more, the company is not active here alone, rather collaborating with partners from all fields of recycling and reuse to unlock its potential across the entire value chain. That’s how it transforms the industry turning waste into valuable resources, reducing the use of fossil fuels and significantly reducing CO₂ emissions.

The first initiative is called Evocycle^® CQ Mattress: ����AV, together with partners, has developed an innovative technology for the chemolysis of polyurethane flexible foams from used mattresses, in which both main components – the polyol and the precursor to the isocyanate TDI – can be recovered. With this, end of life mattress foams are directly transformed back into renewed polyurethane building blocks.

Since last year the company is operating a pilot plant at its Leverkusen site confirming the positive lab test results. And the journey continues: ����AV is working with recycling specialists such as Interzero and Eco-mobilier², as well as other partners along the value chain, to ultimately close the material cycle for polyurethane mattresses completely and on an industrial scale.

From mass-balanced raw materials to green hydrogen

Raw materials produced from biomass and, in particular, from biowaste and residual materials are also becoming increasingly important. ����AV relies primarily on the latter raw materials because they are available in large quantities and can be used to manufacture a wide range of plastics. Through mass balancing, they are offered in the same good quality as their fossil-based counterparts without customers having to change their processing operations. ����AV works with a number of suppliers who offer the raw materials using a mass-balance approach certified to the internationally recognized ISCC PLUS standard. The starting point also includes fossil raw materials, with the biological portions being allocated to the products by a third party audited allocation method.

����AV is thus converting its production to the use of alternative and, above all, mass-balanced raw materials, in some cases also using renewable energy from wind and solar power. Many of the company's sites are now also ISCC PLUS certified, including Leverkusen, Dormagen, Krefeld-Uerdingen, Antwerp, Filago, Shanghai, Map Ta Phut and Changhua.

Green hydrogen generated with the help of wind or solar energy also plays an important role for the chemical industry – both as an alternative raw material and as a source of clean energy. ����AV, together with partners, is committed to the urgently needed market ramp-up. The company uses hydrogen and its derivatives to produce high-performance plastics.

¹ Climate neutrality is the result of an internal assessment of a partial product life cycle from raw material extraction (cradle) to ����AV's factory gate, also known as cradle-to-gate assessment.
² The company "Eco-mobilier" has changed its name to "ecomaison" at the beginning of October 2022.

“We have set ourselves the goal to become fully circular. To this end, we want to convert our raw material base to 100% renewable sources. We are very pleased to have found a partner in SOL Kohlensäure who will support us in this transformation with a pioneering spirit,” explains Daniel Koch, Head of NRW Plants at ����AV.

“We at SOL Kohlensäure are advancing the shift to more sustainable CO₂ sources. In this way, we are increasing security of supply, becoming independent of fossil raw materials, and reducing our environmental footprint at the same time,” emphasizes Falko Probst, Sales Manager at SOL Kohlensäure.

From waste product to raw material

The CO₂ used is obtained by SOL Kohlensäure from various sources, such as bioethanol and biogas plants. In these plants, CO₂ is produced as a by-product during the treatment of various biomasses, such as plant residues.  This is separated by SOL Carbon Dioxide, purified and then made available to ����AV production as a raw material. 

In this way, the supply partnership supports the circular concept and contributes to reducing emissions. 

����AV’s Lower Rhine sites in Leverkusen, Dormagen and Krefeld-Uerdingen are ISCC PLUS certified and can supply their customers with more sustainable products made from renewable raw materials.

Goal of climate neutrality by 2035

����AV has set itself the goal of becoming fully circular. This also includes using alternative raw materials. Biomass, CO₂, as well as end-of-life materials and waste replace fossil raw materials such as crude oil or natural gas. Carbon is managed in a circular way. In realizing these ambitions, both companies are relying on long-term supply partnerships.

In addition to biogenic CO₂, ����AV is investigating the use of other technical gases from renewable sources. The materials manufacturer is already offering its customers its first sustainable products, such as climate-neutral¹&�Բ�����; MDI. With the expansion of its alternative raw material base, this portfolio is set to grow further in the coming years.

ISCC (“International Sustainability and Carbon Certification”) is an internationally recognized system for the sustainability certification of biomass and bioenergy, among others. The standard applies to all stages of the value chain and is recognized worldwide. ISCC Plus also encompasses other certification options for instance for technical-chemical applications, such as plastics from biomass.

¹ _{Climate neutrality is the result of an internal assessment of a partial product life cycle from raw material extraction (cradle) to the factory gate (����AV gate), also known as cradle-to-gate assessment. The methodology of our life cycle assessment, which has been critically reviewed by TÜV Rheinland, is based on ISO standards 14040 and 14044. The calculation takes into account biogenic carbon sequestration based on compensation measures.}

"The development of these resins is very important to us. After all, it contributes to the expansion of alternative energies and strengthens our strategic orientation to sustainably reduce the CO₂ footprint and take even more steps towards climate neutrality," explains Klaus Franken, Head of Application Development Wind and Pultrusion at ����AV. "To be competitive, the wind industry faces the constant challenge of reducing the Levelized Cost of Electricity. We can help here by enabling our customers to produce rotor blades faster and thus more cost-effectively. At the same time, higher energy yield through optimized blade properties and longer service life also play a role."

Close cooperation with customers

One goal of the Wind Technology Center is to develop robust materials that combine the properties important for rotor blades, such as strength, stiffness and temperature resistance. Existing products are continuously optimized and completely new formulations are developed and tested. Another goal: application technology development in close cooperation with customers. Klaus Franken explains: "Here we can simulate our customers' manufacturing processes and show how our PUR resins help them to realize both their rotor blade designs and the manufacturing process in the best possible way."

����AV attaches great importance to optimally tailoring its products to the needs of its customers. That is why a number of cooperative ventures with European and Asian wind turbine manufacturers are already in place. The focus here is on constructing and testing prototypes.

The high-tech center is located in Leverkusen and was completed and put into operation at the beginning of this year. It comprises two interconnected units: a laboratory area for chemical development and an Upscaling Plant. The latter is home to processing technology and application development.

Development and application go hand in hand

The center offers clear advantages: "Chemical development and application technology can work hand in hand here. On top of that, the physical proximity makes it easier to exchange information directly and quickly. We use identical resources and the same infrastructure and quickly obtain a comprehensive depiction of the process. This helps us to pursue our goals in a results-oriented manner and without losing knowledge, and enables us to offer new, innovative solutions to our customers," explains Technical Center Manager Frank Grimberg. "Process and plant safety, explosion protection, machine safety and, of course, occupational safety are always in the spotlight here," explains Tobias Wollersheim, who as Project Management was responsible for planning and implementing the investment.

Another positive aspect: with the innovative technology center, ����AV is increasing its attractiveness as an employer. Indeed, wind technology offers a wide range of new, interesting fields of work that arouse curiosity and offer diversity. ����AV has taken on a newly qualified chemical technician from its own training program to operate the machines. He is being intensively trained in the processes and machine technology.

This much is clear: Things are moving in the area of wind energy.

Quotes

"With this strategic investment, ����AV aims to further enlarge the capacity and improve the reliability of its global supply of Desmodur^® 15 based products," says Philip Bahke, Head of Operations at ����AV Elastomers.

"On top of addressing our customers’ demand, ����AV's Barcelona site has been operating entirely on renewable energy since the beginning of 2022," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer at ����AV. "This approach is part of our ambition to reduce our environmental impact while offering our customers greater access to our solutions and specialties products."

"We are opening the new production unit for our Desmodur^® 15 prepolymers in Barcelona in parallel to the ongoing expansion of our NDI capacities in the Asia-Pacific region with the Map Ta Phut plant in Thailand," explains Thomas Braig, Head of ����AV Elastomers. "This new production unit will help us to support our customers’ growth in the cast polyurethanes high-end applications segment." The abbreviation NDI stands for naphthylene diisocyanate.

"Thanks to this new production line, our Vulkollan^® licensees, as Desmodur^® 15 prepolymers processors, will be able to further develop their business," explains Abdel Arhzaf, Head of NDI-Vulkollan^®. "Through these investments, we intend to support the demand for ultra-high-performance elastomers used for superior applications as e.g. in the material handling industry and also for a growing number of engineering applications."

Combining the highest mechanical characteristics with dynamic load-bearing capacity, elastomers based on Desmodur^® 15 prepolymers are not only one of the most powerful cast polyurethanes in the market, they are also as easy to process as conventional prepolymers. 

The new capacity is intended to meet the growing global demand for multilayer TPU Films. They are used in automotive interiors and construction, among other applications. Breathable, water-impermeable specialty films have also proven their worth in wound care and outdoor clothing. The new facilities are scheduled for completion as early as the end of 2023.

"With this capacity expansion, we are strengthening our Bomlitz site and our position as a leading supplier of technical specialty films," said Dr. Klaus Schäfer, Chief Technology Officer of ����AV, at the groundbreaking ceremony. "At the same time, we are investing in promising technologies and applications and creating new jobs."

For Aleta Richards, global head of the Specialty Films segment, the expansion offers opportunities to respond even better to individual customer needs and offer more sustainable products. "For some time now, we have also been developing customer-specific solutions with films made from alternative raw materials, as we are also seeing increasing demand in this area. The development and production of partially bio-based products is therefore to become a new focus at the Bomlitz site."

����AV is fully geared toward the circular economy and aims to become climate-neutral by 2035. To this end, the Bomlitz site plans to switch its energy supply completely to green electricity starting this year.

Epurex Films is one of three ����AV competence centers for specialty films in Germany. The other two centers in Leverkusen and Dormagen are focused on research, production and application of polycarbonate films.

For ����AV, offering renewable TDI via mass balance is only a logical next step of making this important chemical raw material even more sustainable, as Dr. Klaus Schäfer, Chief Technology Officer of ����AV, explains: "Already years ago, our unique gas phase technology was a milestone towards more energy efficiency in the production of TDI. After that we committed ourselves to ensure a further reduction in emissions from our production by switching to green electricity. This additional improvement now makes it clear how consistently we are pursuing our path to climate-neutral production³ and the circular economy: By using mass-balanced renewable raw materials, we are now also striving to significantly reduce our indirect emissions in the supply chain and to offer products with a reduced carbon footprint."

"With our shift to mass-balanced products, we are helping customers in various industries achieve their climate targets and drive the transition to a circular economy," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer of ����AV. "At the same time, we are strengthening the use of alternative raw materials and reducing CO₂ emissions along various value chains." Customers can use this TDI as a drop-in solution, meaning it can be implemented rapidly and easily in existing production processes without the need for technical modification.

Flexible PU foams made with TDI and long-chain polyols are important materials in the manufacture of seat cushions and mattresses. Renewable TDI meets demands for more sustainable production while ensuring the good quality, optimal comfort and high breathability known from fossil-based TDI. It also meets the expectations of the automotive industry, which is looking for alternative raw materials for car seat cushions with a lower carbon footprint.

Sinomax as pioneer for more sustainability

Only late last year, ����AV signed its first commercial supply contract with Sinomax, a global manufacturer and distributor of polyurethane comfort products based in China. Both companies share a clear commitment toward the circular economy, and Sinomax wants to be the first customer to use the new TDI to reduce its CO₂ emissions. The mass-balanced TDI required for this is supplied by the ISCC PLUS-certified Shanghai site of ����AV. Thanks to its global presence, the company can also supply larger amounts of mass-balanced TDI.

In this mass balance approach, raw materials derived from biomass or waste are fed in at an early stage of raw material extraction and mathematically attributed to the finished products. This saves fossil raw materials and reduces greenhouse gas emissions, while the quality of the mass-balanced products remains the same compared to purely fossil-based ones. Manufacturers can continue to use their proven formulations, equipment and processes, meanwhile gradually transforming their product portfolio towards a more sustainable one and achieving their climate targets.

_{¹ The renewable TDI is produced with the help of the mass balance approach using renewable raw materials - from virgin biomass and bio waste and residues - which are mathematically attributed to the product.}

_{² According to an internal assessment of a partial product life cycle from raw material extraction (cradle) to the factory gate (of ����AV), also known as cradle-to-gate assessment. The methodology of our LCA is based on the ISO 14040 and 14044 standards. The calculation takes into account the biological origin of the carbon based on preliminary data from the supply chain. No compensation measures were applied.}

_{³ The term “climate-neutral production” refers to the ����AV target of reducing scope 1 and scope 2 emissions to zero by 2035.}

����AV is also providing its companies in Slovakia and Poland, where many Ukrainian refugees are currently arriving, with further EUR 40,000, which will be donated to local aid organizations. Even though the group itself only has a small business commitment in the region affected, it feels an obligation to the people in need.

In view of the worsening humanitarian situation in the middle of Europe, ����AV CEO Dr. Markus Steilemann has stated clearly: “Violence must never be the answer to any conflict. I am shocked and saddened by the terrible events! The violence must stop before more people lose their livelihood, are injured or killed. Supporting people in need is a matter close to our hearts.”  

In addition to emergency financial aid, ����AV is currently examining further measures to support the global aid efforts. 

"I am very pleased that we can now offer our customers even more certified mass-balanced products and thus help them even better to achieve their sustainability goals and drive the transition to a circular economy," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer of ����AV. "In doing so, we are also supporting the use of alternative raw materials and reducing CO₂ emissions along the value chains."

Dr. Klaus Schäfer, Chief Technology Officer at ����AV, adds, "The raw materials we use for these products meet the high sustainability requirements of the ISCC Plus standard all the way back through the supply chain. That's why we want to make greater use of alternative raw materials such as these renewably attributed precursors in our production. In addition to the three German sites, also our plants in Antwerp and Shanghai are already ISCC Plus certified, with more sites to follow."

In the mass balance approach, bio-based or recycled raw materials – in this case reprocessed residual materials – are fed in at an early stage of raw material extraction and mathematically attributed to the finished products. This saves fossil raw materials and reduces greenhouse gas emissions, while the quality of the mass-balanced products remains the same compared to purely fossil-based ones. Manufacturers can continue to use their proven formulations, equipment and processes.

ISCC ("International Sustainability and Carbon Certification") is an internationally recognized system for sustainability certification of biomass and bioenergy, among others. The standard covers all stages of the value chain and is widely used worldwide. ISCC Plus includes further certification options for technical-chemical applications, among others, including plastics from biomass.

����AV and have embraced this challenge and are collaborating to develop more sustainable subsea products by leveraging each other’s expertise in their respective fields.

����AV Elastomers develops cast elastomer systems to provide solutions for the offshore energy market. Tekmar is a leading producer of polyurethane based cable protection systems for the global offshore energy markets.

A key component of the cable protection system is the bend restrictor, which along with the rest of the system, is designed to protect cables in the ocean for decades. So, why not propose an alternative polyurethane elastomer system for more sustainable casting of these products? One of the major challenges is the reconciliation of sustainability and technical performance, without any compromise on quality. To solve this, ����AV has developed a new polyurethane elastomer system based on its CO₂ Technology, now called Triturn^®, which positively contributes to reducing the products´ carbon footprint.

The new system for bend restrictors from ����AV, which was recently honored with the UTECH Europe Award 2021 in the CASE category (CASE stands for coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers), allows to reuse CO₂ as a valuable material source in polyol production and to reduce up to 20 percent of the fossil raw materials which is normally used for the polyol. The new system also makes significant technical gains by being easier to process and improving non-aging properties in salt water. Tekmar is using the new PU system to manufacture sample products at its facility in the North East of England and is currently conducting a range of tests on the products.

Marc Bell, Managing Director at Tekmar Energy, says: "Tekmar is committed to developing more sustainable solutions for the offshore energy markets. Working with ����AV enables us to explore alternative solutions which we can share with our customers to support their transition to cleaner energy and net-zero emission targets."

Through a long-term collaboration, ����AV and Tekmar are proactively shaping the subsea protection industry by introducing an alternative and more sustainable solution to move the offshore industry forward.

Demand for high-performance batteries is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years. ����AV brings extensive plastics processing expertise to the table and will showcase a battery module it has developed in-house at the show, allowing it to test its own materials. The company also performs CAE component simulations and provides support to customers with moldflow analyses and injection molding upon request.

����AV's booth, number 205 in Hall 4, will focus on for key battery components such as cell holders for dimensionally accurate placement in housings. These include, in particular, flame-retardant polycarbonate blends from the Bayblend^® FR portfolio, which feature exceptionally good dimensional stability, as well as good electrical properties. As a result, they enable dimensionally stable parts with tight tolerances and thus mass production of battery modules. They also exhibit high impact strength.

Since the plastics in the Makrolon^® RE series have bio-waste and other residual materials as well as renewable energies attributed to them during their production, they can reduce the carbon footprint compared with traditional material solutions. This also applies to the Bayblend^® RE series: the polycarbonate content in these blends is also mass-balanced, so the carbon footprint of these products is reduced by up to 70 percent compared to fossil-based blends. In some cases, renewable energies are also used in production, for example at the Antwerp site of ����AV, where the company is supplied with energy from wind power.

Another important aspect is the dissipation of heat, which is released during battery operation. The thermally conductive polycarbonate Makrolon^® TC (TC stands for "thermally conductive") offers new options for cooling the battery module. Here, for example, ����AV is investigating the effects on battery life. Depending on the design of the battery system, this could also enable faster charging. Battery modules made with this material can be used in electric vehicles, in stationary energy storage systems and in replaceable batteries for two-wheelers.

Stronger, lighter and more sustainable plastics for charging stations

The number of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids is growing significantly, and with it the need for charging stations. There is a wide range of charging equipment on offer, from fixtures in parking lots to wall-mounted charging points in private homes.

Charging stations require materials that meet a number of often very . They have to withstand all types of weather and also withstand attacks of vandalism well. Added to this are the wishes of the operators of charging stations, for example manufacturing by means of mass production as well as high functionality, lightness, toughness and good electrical insulation of the materials. And last but not least, they must be easy to shape in order to offer as much design freedom as possible.

Polycarbonates from the Makrolon^® range and polycarbonate blends from the Bayblend^® series meet all these requirements. Together with the mass-balanced products of the Makrolon^® RE series, they play their part in further reducing the carbon footprint of this more sustainable form of propulsion.

The new committee has a lot of plans for the next term of office. In particular, it wants to breathe even more life into the three guiding principles of the society with a focus on digitization, diversity and internationalization, and thus also continue the course it has taken in recent years to drive forward the modernization of the GDCh. "We can be truly proud of what the GDCh has achieved and what it represents, but we also want to support the changes in society and science and thus play an active role in shaping the future of the GDCh," Danielmeier emphasizes.

Karsten Danielmeier, born in Werl in 1967, studied at the University of Bonn where he received his doctorate in synthetic organic chemistry under Professor Dr. Eberhard Steckhan in 1995. The following year, he joined Bayer AG where he was active in numerous positions of increasing responsibility in raw materials research for coatings and adhesives in Germany and the United States. Most recently, he headed research for the Functional Films division in Leverkusen and was Senior Vice President for Research and Development in the Coatings, Adhesives, Specialties segment at ����AV from 2015 to 2021.

Danielmeier has been a member of the GDCh board since July 2020 and had previously served for several years on the scientific planning committee of the Coatings Chemistry division.

The new products are produced using bioattributed raw materials and have a reduced carbon footprint in comparison to their fossil-based counterparts. At the same time, the mass-balanced products boast the same impressive quality and properties and can be integrated directly into manufacturing processes in downstream industries without technical modifications. In this context, the products are to be certified according to the ISCC Plus standard.

"I am thrilled that we will soon be able to help our customers in the electronics, footwear, automotive and other industries reduce their carbon footprint with this drop-in solution," said Dr. Andrea Maier-Richter, global head of the TPU business at ����AV. "With the ISCC Plus certification, we aim to achieve more transparency from raw material purchasing to our production and distribution to customer use. This is an important step in achieving our vision of becoming fully circular."

Extensive range of more sustainable TPU plastics

����AV has already launched various TPU products based on alternative resources over the past few years, as more and more consumers prefer more sustainable products. ����AV is offering a  on this topic on October 28 as part of its CE Days event series. Outdoor outfitter VAUDE, for example, plans to use a foam midsole made partly from bio-based TPU in its new Lavik Eco hiking boot. Other product types contain a component that has been manufactured proportionately using CO₂ instead of fossil raw materials. ����AV's range of Desmopan® brand TPU plastics also includes a range of fully recycled products. They are used, for example, in smartphone cases from the Dutch manufacturer Fairphone.

Thermoplastic polyurethanes are very versatile plastics. They come in a variety of hardnesses, are flexible yet impact resistant, and are therefore highly suitable for a wide range of applications.

Mass balancing creates transparency

Supplying mass-balanced products is part of ����AV's comprehensive global program designed to fully align itself with the circular economy. In doing so, the company is focusing on increasing the use of alternative resources such as bio-based materials, plastic waste and CO₂, as well as renewable energies. The company is also collaborating with partners to develop innovative recycling technologies.

In mass balancing, fossil and alternative raw materials are mixed in production but treated separately in accounting. The chain-of-custody method enables materials to be tracked along the entire value chain and allows alternative resources, such as bioattributed components, to be allocated to selected end products. To date, a total of three ����AV production sites in Europe and Asia-Pacific have been certified in compliance with the ISCC Plus standard, with further sites to follow.

ISCC ("International Sustainability and Carbon Certification") is an internationally recognized system for the sustainability certification of biomass and bioenergy. The standard applies to all stages of the value chain and is recognized worldwide.

In the German cities of Überlingen and Stuttgart, climate-neutral residential quarters are being realized as part of the STADTQUARTIER 2050 project – with a special focus on socially responsible rent development –, which are already intended to serve as a lighthouse for the climate targets to be achieved by 2050 at the latest. The project includes both new buildings and the renovation of existing buildings. See the .

Highly efficient insulation material

At the subproject in Überlingen, the focus is on very good thermal insulation of the around 170 residential units distributed over 14 new buildings. It is achieved by means of an efficient high-performance insulation material from project partner . "Our insulation panels make an important contribution to ensuring that the buildings in Überlingen meet the top energy standard KfW 40 Plus," explains Dr. Andreas Huther, Managing Director of puren. KfW Efficiency House 40 Plus means that a building requires only 40 percent of the primary energy of a reference building in accordance with the Energy Saving Ordinance. "But the insulation boards offer even more sustainability, as they are manufactured in a resource-friendly way and are also durable and recyclable."

"The insulation boards are based on polyurethane raw materials from ����AV and offer the best insulating effect of commercially available insulation materials," adds Fernando Resende, Marketing Manager Building and Construction in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region at ����AV. "Therefore, they can be designed thinner compared to other materials to achieve the same insulating effect. The result is a gain in usable space in the home, but also less resource consumption in the manufacture of the panels."

Affordable housing

The socially responsible rental concept of the investor, Baugenossenschaft Überlingen (BGÜ), also ensures a plus in sustainability. Low energy costs due to thermal insulation, a gain in living space due to slim facade insulation, and an innovative and efficient local heating supply all contribute to this. In addition, there is a new type of neighborhood app tailored to the residents with a bonus system for conscious energy consumption of the Project Group Business Informatics of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Information Technology (FIT). The socially compatible and rent-neutral renovation of the neighborhood on the outskirts of Überlingen also contributes to this.

STADTQUARTIER 2050 is supported by the Federal Ministries of Education and Research (BMBF) and Economics and Energy (BMWi) as a flagship project at the neighborhood level (funding code: 03SBE116). It is part of the interdepartmental funding initiative “Solar Building/Energy Efficient City” within the framework of the 6th energy research program of the Federal Government.

Individual city quarters such as the one in Überlingen serve as real-world laboratories in which, with the involvement of all relevant stakeholders, innovative concepts for the heating and energy revolution can be researched and implemented simultaneously, but also quickly transferred to other municipalities.

"The Expo in Dubai is a unique opportunity to show the world how we can tackle the many global challenges and shape a truly sustainable future. This will succeed if society and business consistently adapt to the circular economy," says Markus Steilemann, CEO of ����AV. "The chemical industry is contributing to this by making its processes and products even more environmentally compatible. With this in mind, we at ����AV are developing more and more ways to produce high-quality plastics using CO₂ instead of petroleum."

Science and industry discuss future topics

To accompany Expo 2020 in Dubai, ����AV and the Institute of Biological and Earth Sciences 2: Plant Sciences at Forschungszentrum Jülich are hosting #IndustryMeetsScience Talks, a virtual talk series highlighting and discussing current issues and global challenges such as endangered biodiversity, future mobility and the expansion of renewable energies. The talks feature high-profile opinion leaders from the fields of science and business.

"The #IndustryMeetsScience Talks are an exciting virtual talk series that highlights exemplary solutions to global challenges. Together, we want to highlight Germany's innovative solutions to key issues. I am pleased that we have been able to attract renowned experts for this purpose," says Professor Ulrich Schurr from Forschungszentrum Jülich. The first virtual talk on the topic of plant life and biodiversity will take place on October 15. This will be followed on October 21 by the topic of alternative raw materials with ����AV CEO Markus Steilemann.

The #IndustryMeetsScience Talks will be broadcast live on ����AV's popular social media channels, including , , und Youtube.

Part of the German Pavilion with focus on sustainability

����AV and Forschungszentrum Jülich are partners in the German Pavilion consortium at Expo 2020 Dubai. The exhibit on the circular economy is part of the German Pavilion, which is located on the grounds in the sustainability area and is organized by Koelnmesse GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. In total, the German Pavilion showcases 36 innovative and creative exhibits designed to encourage guests to interact and raise awareness of the importance of sustainability in the present and future.

The exhibits are divided into the core themes of energy, city of the future and biodiversity, each of which represents a so-called lab. The ����AV exhibit on the circular economy will be located in the Lab City of the Future, which is divided into a series of innovative ideas and approaches that take a look at the mobility, buildings and life of tomorrow.

Expo 2020 will start on October 1, 2021 and run for a total of six months, until March 31, 2022.

From November 2021, Adient will be integrating cardyon^®, a polyol made using ����AV’s CO₂-technology, as a sustainable feedstock for the production of hot cure molded polyurethane foam. Adient deploys these foams as cushioning in its cutting-edge automotive seating systems.

This supply chain-related sustainability milestone helps to further reduce Adient’s scope 3 emissions as calculated by the Greenhouse Gas protocol. Based on the principle of the circular economy, the CO₂-technology by ����AV reuses carbon dioxide as a valuable material source by integrating up to 20 percent of CO₂ into polyol production. The smart contribution helps to preserve fossil resources and close the carbon loop.

David Nash, Vice President Components EMEA at Adient: “Adient is pursuing multiple ways to reduce its CO₂ footprint, further raising sustainability, and this is especially true for the production of polyurethane foam. By choosing cardyon^® by our partner ����AV, we have made another valuable step towards more sustainable production of our high-class seating systems. In addition to the high quality of our products, this means further differentiation and added value for our customers.”

Flexible CO₂ technology enables sustainable solutions

“We feel very pleased that, together with Adient, we are taking a further step towards the circular economy. The fact that our CO₂-technology is now also available for premium car seats confirms the great potential of this unique innovation, realizing high-quality sustainable solutions for the automotive industry”, says Dr. Persefoni Hilken, cardyon^® Venture Manager at ����AV.

By integrating enhanced polyol solutions into the production of polyurethane foam, Adient supports the reuse of CO₂ from chemical processes as an alternative raw material. Thereby the company follows the path of moving away from fossil resources to recycled ones, avoiding CO₂ being emitted to the atmosphere. The CO₂-technology itself can be also used for further applications, such as sports flooring, mattresses, and textile fibers.

The newly-developed foams fulfil all stringent OEM specifications, having the same properties as those produced from fossil-based polyols. Additionally, the new solution can be easily applied within existing production processes, with only a minor modification of equipment.

"I am fascinated by the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit with which the students are developing and optimizing new ideas for solar cars," says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer of ����AV. "That’s why we’re sponsoring this project: with our commitment to sustainable future mobility and building a Circular Economy, we want to encourage young people from top universities to use their talents to work with us to develop advanced materials and technologies."

"After two years of hard work, we finally reveal our new Sonnenwagen," says Simon Quinker, vice chairman of Team Sonnenwagen Aachen. "By using innovative technologies, the ����AV Photon is the most efficient Sonnenwagen. We are looking forward to the cooperation with ����AV and together we are taking a further step towards sustainable mobility."

Becoming fully circular

Global challenges such as climate change and increasing resource consumption require new concepts for future mobility. ����AV has been developing material solutions for electromobility for some time, but is also focusing on the increased use of renewable energies such as solar and wind power. Together with the use of alternative raw materials and the development of innovative recycling concepts, it is part of a comprehensive program with which ����AV is fully gearing itself to the Circular Economy. To achieve this, the company cooperates with many partners along the value chain as well as with universities and institutes.

In the solar cars of the Sonnenwagen team, ����AV is testing innovative and sustainable materials under the extreme climatic conditions that typically prevail on such race tracks: very high UV radiation, high temperatures and mechanical vibrations while driving. The company thereby underscores that its innovative and sustainable materials can be used in cutting-edge technologies, for example for cars. In addition to partially biobased raw materials, the company also plans to launch recycled plastics in the next vehicle.

With the environmental impact of fossil-based products becoming increasingly clear, recent years have seen an unprecedented demand for sustainable products and brands. Across the global paints and coatings industry, regulatory bodies are setting higher and higher sustainability and transparency standards, while consumers are increasingly applying their spending power to choosing eco-friendly solutions. For example, a recent European Painter Insight Monitor¹ report found that environmentally friendly paints are now the number-one desired innovation among painters, with 36 percent of France’s professional painters selecting this as a desired innovation/ranking this as their most desired innovation.

Market insights from artificial intelligence and Big Data

To address these changes in the market landscape and help shape more sustainable high-performance paints and coatings industries, ����AV is launching a new plant-powered approach marked by transparency, dialogue and collaboration – called ‘Paint with Nature’. Leveraging its proprietary market insights gained through artificial intelligence and big data, ����AV will work closely with partners across the value chain to provide education and support on biobased raw materials. Additionally, it will implement a ‘Sign the Sustainability Pledge’ initiative.

Through these initiatives and its Decovery® family of resins, whose biobased content is verified to C14 standards, ����AV will drive awareness of biobased solutions as an alternative to fossil-based products and accelerate their adoption across the paints and coatings industries.

Tim Gratzke, Marketing Manager Decovery®: “At ����AV, we are very excited and proud to be launching a new approach to further drive plant-based resins for paints and coatings, and better connect the needs of end-users and manufacturers to environmentally friendly technologies. Using our market leadership in biobased solutions, we’ll be able to provide education and support to accelerate our customers’ sustainability journeys. This will help them to better address market needs, as well as protect the environment.”

No compromise on performance

He continues, “More than ever, the transition from fossil-based paints and coatings to biobased ones is within reach and involves no compromise on functional performance. And we’re committed to continuing to push the boundaries on sustainability – as such, a new, exciting plant-powered paints and coatings age awaits!”

To learn more about Decovery® paints and coatings, and ����AV’s new approach, please visit the dedicated landing page here:

¹

The objective is to explore the use of carbon monoxide (CO) from steel industry metallurgical gases for the production of high-quality polycarbonates. ����AV has now commissioned a mini-plant for this purpose at its Dormagen site. This is where it is tested whether the quality of the CO from metallurgical gases is sufficient for further processing.

The innovative process has great sustainability potential: Initial life cycle analyses show that around 0.48 kilograms of CO₂ equivalent can be saved per kilogram of CO provided in the steel industry-chemical industry alliance. This means savings of more than 80 percent.

Industrial symbiosis as the key

The lighthouse project proves how important industrial symbiosis is on the path to climate-neutral production in Germany. ����AV has been working closely with thyssenkrupp since 2016. RWTH Aachen University and the Max Planck Institute Mühlheim are also involved in the project. Among other things, they do life-cycle analyses for the processes and test and develop new catalysts.

Dr. Stefanie Eiden heads the Carbon2Polymers subproject at ����AV. She is confident that the knowledge gained could also be helpful for other research projects: “Coke oven gases have the advantage that they bring with them many accompanying substances. If we succeed in processing the CO in such a way that we can use it to produce our high-performance plastics, we can also do the same with other non-fossil-based CO sources.” By the end of the year, it will be evaluated whether the innovative process is economically and ecologically viable.

Setting the course for a climate-neutral circular economy

Dr. Markus Steilemann, CEO of ����AV, sees the Carbon2Polymers project as a further milestone in the development of a global circular economy: “We can only succeed in the fight against climate change if we enter into profitable cooperations. The collaboration with thyssenkrupp illustrates once again the enormous contribution industry can make on the path to greenhouse gas-neutral production. By using coke oven gases, we are further advancing the repeated use of raw materials and thus closing the cycle.”

The industry is receiving support from politicians: the German government is funding the Carbon2Chem project with an additional 75 million euros until 2024. In this way, around 20 million tons of the steel industry’s annual CO₂ emissions in Germany are to be made economically viable in the long term.

The CO₂-technology makes it possible to use harmful carbon dioxide as a valuable raw material for sustainable plastics. The process uses chemical catalysts to drive reactions between CO₂ and a conventional raw material. This process creates so-called polymers in a more sustainable and economically viable way. CO₂ is tightly bound during the process.

Recognition "for the entire team"

"We are overwhelmed and enormously happy for the entire team, which collectively deserves this recognition. The participation in the inventor award for the CO₂ technology is an important sign for all scientists, process engineers, application engineers and patent attorneys that years of research and development and professional patent management pay off - to create a more climate-friendly future in this case," says Christoph Gürtler.

"Our efforts to make chemistry more sustainable are once again bearing fruit. The fact that the contributions of basic research are being recognized as part of the development of such a process is an extraordinary recognition that would never have been possible without the interdisciplinary team behind it," adds Walter Leitner.

With its CO₂-technology, ����AV has taken an important step toward the Circular Economy. Proportionally, up to 20 percent of fossil raw materials can now be replaced in products. The carbon from the CO₂ then remains in the cycle without being released into the atmosphere. At the same time, initial studies suggest that this technology can also be used to produce more recyclable plastics, whose components could be more easily recycled.

Markus Steilemann, CEO of ����AV, is convinced of the future-oriented technology: "We need to save fossil resources and make industry climate-neutral. With sustainable CO₂-technology, we have set a leading light on the path to a circular economy. We are leaving the era of petroleum behind and driving the circular economy with alternative raw materials. I am proud of the team that has made this development possible."

"To curb climate change, all sectors of society and the economy must reduce their carbon footprint. This cannot be done without far-reaching technical innovations, which in many areas require fundamental findings in chemistry. CO₂ utilization, made possible by the team led by Walter Leitner and Christoph Gürtler, is an excellent example of this. And also of how fruitful cooperation between basic and applied research can be," says Martin Stratmann, President of the Max Planck Society.

Joint solution from industry and science

The pioneering research and development work for the Inventor's Award began in 2007 in joint BMBF-funded research projects ("Dream Reaction/ Dream Production"), which primarily involved ����AV and the CAT Catalytic Center as a joint research facility of ����AV and RWTH Aachen University, along with other partners. Once significant new findings on the effect of the catalyst were available, rapid further development of the innovative process became possible: an excellent example of the potential of partnerships between basic research and research-oriented industry. These developments were scaled up in other fields of application in two additional BMBF-funded projects („Dream Resource/ Dream Resource Conti“) and form the basis for the CO₂-technology of ����AV.

CO₂ generally only forms chemical compounds at great expense and only with the right partners under conditions optimized for this purpose. “The use of CO₂ requires a 'chemical matchmaker,' so to speak: the catalyst," Leitner explains. It was this problem that the team had to solve. The combination of industrial and academic expertise, creativity, perseverance and many experiments finally culminated in success. The breakthrough was achieved by precisely controlling the reaction between CO₂ and the petroleum-based alkylene oxide in the presence of a suitable catalyst system. "Working together, we found the right way to proceed, which can now be readily used for a large-scale chemical process," says Gürtler.

The next step was taken in 2016: an industrial plant was installed in Dormagen, Germany. The reaction of CO₂ with alkylene oxide produces so-called polyols. They are marketed by ����AV under the product name cardyon®. The polyols are already being used to produce soft foam for mattresses, for adhesives in sports flooring, padding in shoes and in car interiors. Elastic textile fibers are currently on the threshold of market maturity. Other Research projects have successfully demonstrated that CO₂ can also be deployed for insulating materials made of rigid foam and for surfactants, for example in detergents.

"This nomination is an important confirmation of our efforts towards making chemistry more sustainable. It shows how crucial patents are for the development process of a technology," says Christoph Gürtler, who is responsible for the development of new processes and products at ����AV. "It is a tremendous honor to be part of the award ceremony on behalf of the interdisciplinary team from product research, process development, marketing and the many other minds driving our invention."

Successful cooperation between industry and science

"The plastics industry can make a significant contribution to combating climate change by switching to greenhouse gas-neutral production. To achieve this, we need to break away from petroleum and use alternative raw materials such as CO₂", says Dr. Markus Steilemann, CEO of ����AV. "The nomination for the European Inventor Award is an endorsement of our company as a pioneer in this field. I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to the many colleagues, including those at our partners, who contributed to the development of the innovative CO₂ technology – a genuine sustainability highlight."

The two nominees, Gürtler and Leitner, have played a significant role in the development and market launch of the platform technology, which originated in the collaboration between application-oriented science and research-oriented industry. Their involvement in a large number of patents related to the use of CO₂ is proof of this: together, the two hold over 100 patents on CO₂ technology.

Breakthrough in catalysis research yields success

����AV and RWTH Aachen University founded the CAT Catalytic Center in 2007. "The scientific community has long had the desire to be able to use carbon dioxide as a supplier of carbon for plastics. Experts have been working on this issue for nearly half a century," explains Walter Leitner.

CO₂ forms chemical compounds only with great difficulty. This is the problem that Christoph Gürtler and Walter Leitner's team had to solve. The team combined industrial and academic expertise. A great deal of creativity, perseverance and many experiments with catalysts finally culminated in success. The breakthrough was achieved by precisely controlling the reaction between CO₂ and the petroleum-based propylene oxide in the presence of a customized catalyst system. "We collaborated closely to develop the right catalyst that led us to success," says Gürtler.

The resulting so-called polyol was introduced to the market by ����AV under the product name cardyon®. It is already being used to produce soft foam for mattresses, for adhesives in sports floors, padding in shoes and in car interiors. Elastic textile fibers are currently on the threshold of market maturity. Research projects have successfully demonstrated that CO₂ can also be deployed for insulating materials made of rigid foam and for surfactants, for example in detergents.

Contributing to resource conservation and the circular economy

The use of CO₂ contributes significantly to the circular economy. Replacing conventional crude oil as a carbon source in part with the climate gas CO₂ preserves resources. The carbon, in turn, remains in the cycle without being released into the atmosphere. Moreover, initial studies have also shown that this technology makes it possible to produce more recyclable plastics whose components can be more easily recycled. An all-round sustainable innovation.

Launched in 2006, the European Patent Office's Inventor Award distinguishes outstanding European inventors and teams and is one of the most prestigious awards of its kind. The award ceremony will take place online for the first time on June 17 and will be broadcast live on the Internet. Three teams are nominated in the Industry category.

"With this expansion in capacity, we are strengthening our Dormagen site as a production and competence center for specialty films," says Dr. Klaus Schäfer, Chief Technology Officer at ����AV. "At the same time, we are investing in future-oriented technologies and applications."

The new lines will mainly produce multilayer flat films. These products, for example, play an important role in identity documents in order to embed security features and ensure the best possible protection against counterfeiting. They are also used in medical technology and car interiors.

Equipped for the future

Michael Friede, Global Head of the Coatings, Adhesives, Specialties segment: "These high-quality products and applications represent an important future business for ����AV. With the new capacities and their integration into our film center, we are emphasizing our proximity to the customer and our service."

"Our new production lines are equipped with state-of-the-art technology," emphasizes Dr. Thorsten Dreier, Global Head of ����AV’s Specialty Films and Thermoplastic Polyurethanes business. "That’s why we can now supply our customers faster and with higher quality. We also want to improve our development work and bring new products to market even faster."

Competence centers close to customers

The competence center in Dormagen houses production, a technical center for film processing, as well as a showroom and research laboratories. ����AV operates two other German competence centers for semi-finished products in Leverkusen and Bomlitz, as well as several competence centers worldwide.

As a further measure of the global investment program, ����AV started up a new production facility for polycarbonate films in Map Ta Phut, Thailand, last year. Previously, a coextrusion film plant in Guangzhou, China, was converted for the future and the efficiency and quality of production in South Deerfield, USA, were improved.

Press Releases:

• Closing the loop for polyurethane mattresses
• ����AV and REnato lab launch Circular Design Guidebook for EEA industry

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On average, mattresses contain 15 to 20 kilograms of foam, which results in a large amount of waste at the end of their useful life. The foam is primarily made of two important raw materials. While other chemical recycling approaches mainly focus on processing one of them, the ����AV process now enables the recovery of both raw materials.

����AV has also recently started operating a pilot plant for flexible foam recycling at its Leverkusen site to confirm the positive laboratory results achieved to date. The first phase is to focus on recycling one of the raw materials, before the recovery of the second component is also to be piloted from summer this year. ����AV´s goal here is to industrialize chemical recycling processes for used flexible foams and ultimately to remarket both recovered raw materials.

Closing material loops

"The development of this innovative recycling technology and the investment in the pilot plant are further milestones in realizing our vision of fully aligning ����AV to the circular economy," says CEO Dr. Markus Steilemann. "In doing so, we want to replace fossil resources in production, steadily further reduce the carbon footprint of our materials and create new solutions for dealing with plastic waste. Chemical recycling is particularly promising for this, and must be developed further and used more intensively overall. Above all, it should finally be put on an equal legal basis with other recycling methods."

In cooperation with the companies Recticel and Redwave – a division of Wolfgang Binder GmbH – and as part of the PUReSmart research project, ����AV has also developed an intelligent sorting solution for separating the different PU foams from post-consumer mattresses. The software uses algorithms to correctly identify the different foam types, which facilitates an effective recycling process. This development is another element of ����AV’s digitalization strategy, combined with the new opportunities it entails for the chemicals and plastics industry.

Co-creation of a circular ecosystem

"Based on our competencies and experiences, we also want to take part in shaping the emerging value creation cycle," says Daniel Meyer, Global Head of the Polyurethanes segment at ����AV. "To accomplish this, we rely on international cooperation with partners and also develop innovative business models. The aim is to generate new sustainable business opportunities with our customers, other partners and for ourselves."

The project is an important step forward in taking the development of the circular economy at ����AV to entirely new heights. The increased use of used materials further contributes to solving the societal challenge of sustainable disposal of such waste and to achieving the European Union´s goals for the circular economy and for climate and environmental protection.

The new agreement, known as a Corporate PPA, covers a capacity of 39 megawatts. This equals the energy supply for about 30,000 private households and reduces ����AV’s carbon footprint in Belgium by more than 38,500 metric tons of CO₂, which is equivalent to the emissions of almost 20,000 cars per year.

More energy efficient production

Production in the chemical industry is traditionally energy-intensive. ����AV sees this as an incentive to take responsibility and minimize both energy demand and CO₂ emissions from production plants and processes. With its various innovative process technologies and a licensed energy management system ����AV has already significantly increased energy efficiency and reduced emissions from its production. The company has set itself the goal to halve its specific carbon dioxide emissions by 2025 compared to 2005. In addition and in line with its new vision, ����AV wants to obtain most of the remaining energy from wind power.

"The new supply agreement is a milestone in the conversion of our production to the use of renewable energies," says Georg Wagner, Managing Director at ����AV in Antwerp. "Wind energy, together with the use of sustainable raw materials and innovative recycling technologies, are important steps towards realizing our vision of becoming fully circular and achieving the climate goals of the European Green Deal. We are pleased to have found a partner in ENGIE to take this next step, with which we support our customers and the corresponding value chains to produce more sustainably."

Largest supplier of renewable energies in Belgium

Vincent Verbeke, head of ENGIE Global Energy Management in Belgium, says, "Being the largest renewable energy producer in Belgium, ENGIE acts to accelerate the transition towards a carbon-neutral world, by supporting its clients in reaching their sustainability goals. We are proud to help ����AV meet their environmental goals and to facilitate their consumption of onshore wind energy. This contract also illustrates ENGIE’s strong ambition to increase renewables’ development in Belgium."

����AV already signed a major industrial customer supply contract with energy provider Ørsted to cover a significant proportion of the electricity requirements of the German sites for a long-time period as from 2025. The current contract with ENGIE will make Antwerp the first ����AV production site powered almost half by wind energy.

At its Antwerp site, ����AV produces the high-performance plastic polycarbonate, which is used in car headlights, electrical and electronic components, LED lights, medical technology and many other applications. It also produces polyethers and the important industrial chemical aniline. The latter is eventually processed into methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI), a raw material for rigid polyurethane foam, which has proven to be an efficient insulator for buildings and in the cold chain.

“Especially in buildings with high foot traffic, it’s important to have an abrasion-resistant and durable flooring so that it still looks appealing after several years,” explains Contardo Pafumi, Industrial Marketing Manager Construction at ����AV. “For such applications, polyurethane-based sealers have proven their worth. They are very robust and also easy to clean.”

More environmentally compliant coating

For these and other reasons, ����AV chose the elastic terrazzo system from the Swiss installation company TEXOLIT AG. It is also particularly low in emissions and complies with AgBB regulations for indoor air emissions. It is also suitable for environmental certification under the LEED Gold Standard (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design).

In total, an area of 1,800 square meters was equipped with the terrazzo floor. The coating comes from coatings manufacturer KLB Kötztal Lacke + Beschichtungen GmbH and is based on an aqueous polyacrylate dispersion from ����AV´s Bayhydrol® range and a polyisocyanate crosslinker from the Bayhydur® series.

“With the help of artificial intelligence, we will be able to find digital solutions across departmental boundaries in the future that were not possible before. This opens up completely new possibilities to achieve greater sustainability with improved resource utilization and thus to serve the needs of our customers even more precisely,” says Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer of ����AV.

Pilot projects put the use of AI to the test

At its Dormagen production site, ����AV is testing how the manufacturing process for polyesters can be optimized. Polyesters are needed for the production of polyurethanes. The use of artificial intelligence in the processing of the company’s comprehensive process data is intended to create free production capacities and minimize energy consumption. Digital technologies are also used in Dormagen and at the Leverkusen and Krefeld-Uerdingen sites to predict the peak steam consumption of production plants. In this way, energy consumption and costs can be reduced in the long term.

Another project deals with the digital customer experience. Machine learning is used to help to identify potential customers for ����AV at all digital touch points on the Internet and social media. The aim is to win them over as customers in the long term through consultation and information. Artificial intelligence will also be used in ����AV’s purchasing department in the future. Faulty invoices can then be identified with less effort, making the invoicing acknowledgement process much more efficient.

Utilizing data science for more intelligent production

“AI is a fascinating opportunity for ����AV worldwide. The ongoing projects show that data and its proper use not only make the entire industry smarter and faster, but can also contribute to the bottom line,” says Nils Janus, Head of Advanced Analytics at ����AV. To make optimum use of data-based findings in the future, the materials manufacturer has developed the ����AV Analytics Platform (CAP), a platform for data scientists. It collects raw data from production plants, research results, and business processes and supplements it with external databases to perform analyses and train machine learning models. In this way, ����AV is taking another important step towards digitalization and data-driven business management.

����AV intends to base all the company’s operations on the principles of the circular economy and is pursuing the long-term goal of climate-neutral production. “Technological innovations in the area of process technology, in particular, are an important pillar of our strategy to achieve this goal,” says Dr. Klaus Schäfer, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of ����AV. “AdiP is a technology we have worked on intensively in its development at multiple sites, and which once again underlines the innovative leadership of ����AV.”

“If we want to overcome the climate crisis as a society, we need ambitious and innovative impulses from the industrial sector. Innovative economic activity and climate protection are not opposites; nowadays, business and climate protection belong together. You can see this in the ����AV project presented to us today", says Minister Jan Philipp Albrecht.

More efficient and environmentally friendly than existing processes

AdiP stands for adiabatic-isothermal phosgenation, which describes the key feature of the technology: the reaction is controlled more efficiently and does not require an external heat supply, as the heat generated during the reaction process is used.

As a result, this innovative production process significantly reduces energy consumption and CO₂ emissions in MDI production. Thanks to AdiP technology up to 40% steam and 25% electricity can be saved per ton of MDI produced in an MDI plant – and CO₂ emissions are thus reduced by up to 35%.

Another advantage of the innovative method is that the production output increases by 50% compared to the technology currently in use. As a result, future MDI production plants based on AdiP technology can be smaller than in the past.

Pilot phase to bring long-term experience

“I am confident that the new technology will pass its practical test and become an important component of our growth strategy for MDI. At the same time, I expect AdiP to significantly improve the efficiency of our production processes,” says Daniel Meyer, head of the Polyurethanes unit at ����AV. The pilot phase should be completed in about 12 months’ time.

“I am proud of the fact that this innovative process has been implemented for the first time on a large scale at our Brunsbüttel site. And I am absolutely convinced that our employees will successfully commission the new technology and optimize it for future use in our global production network,” says Dr. Uwe Arndt, the Brunsbüttel site manager.

����AV is one of the world’s leading producers of MDI, a raw material much in demand for producing energy-efficient insulation solutions for buildings and refrigerating devices. In 2019, the global MDI market had a volume of around 7,500 kilotons and is expected to further grow in the long term. With the new technology, ����AV is making an important contribution to achieving the climate goals of its customer industries.

"The microporous structure of the synthetics is permeable to water vapor and provides the greatest possible comfort in combination with individually selected textiles", explains Matthias Krings, managing director of Trans-Textil. "In combination with other functional layers, products created on this basis are also characterized by their considerable freedom of design in terms of structure, coloring and technical properties."

Advantage polyurethane

"The polyurethane coating is particularly abrasion-resistant and breathable, but in combination with membrane systems from Trans-Textil it can also be made both waterproof and windproof," adds Thomas Michaelis, expert for coated textiles at ����AV. "It is built on our water-based and sustainable INSQIN® technology, which also means that the production of coated textiles requires up to 95 percent less water and 50 percent less energy than previous processes based on solvents." As a result, this was awarded the as an economically viable and environmentally friendly solution.

This combination of properties combined with Trans-Textil's extensive portfolio of membrane systems, textile substrates and technologies provides its customers with a very wide range of sophisticated and individual products. Options include embossed designs in classic or exotic leather looks, textile structures or technical patterns, flexible coloring and a wide selection of textile substrates and spacer systems based on woven, knitted or non-woven fabrics, with which AQUAIR® can be combined in functional multi-layer composites.

In combination with Trans-Textil's technologies, the entirely water-based and solvent-free polyurethane dispersions of the Impranil® and Impraperm® ranges developed by ����AV enable unprecedented breathable properties with a level of comfort and functionality that far exceeds the standard of coated textiles. Water-repellent properties are already integrated into the materials meaning that no additional finishing with harmful substances such as perfluorinated and polyfluorinated compounds (PFCs) is required.

Versatile use in shoes, outdoor, leisure, sports and furniture segments

AQUAIR® can thus be used to design shoe components, leisure, sports and outdoor clothing, bags and accessories, as well as upholstery and furniture. The flexible combination with other functional layers focuses on the requirements of the application as well as the technical and design demands of the customers even for small series or samples. The production as roll material is the basis for an optimal use of material in ready-made clothing.

As a shoe component designed to enhance comfort, the high water vapor permeability of AQUAIR® contributes to the active regulation of the microclimate inside the shoe. Its breathability is preserved even in combination with a waterproof functional membrane system, which Trans-Textil also offers as an option for purely water-based products. The washable technology ensures the greatest possible freedom of movement in clothing due to its high degree of elasticity. As covers for furniture, the products not only score highly for their abrasion resistance, but also in terms of reduced perspiration in the seat and backrest areas, stain resistance and easy care. AQUAIR® can also be laminated with upholstery foams if required. This results in textile-based multi-layer systems boasting high standards in terms of performance as well as ecology.

Reliable seam sealing

In addition, both partners have also developed solvent-free seam sealing tapes for all common laminate types. Topaz tapes provide reliable impermeability and enable long-lasting use of high-quality functional textile, for example in shoe laminates, work wear, outdoor, leisure and sportswear as well as in technical garments. The tapes can be customized in terms of technical properties, dimensions and design. They are designed for industrial washing at up to 60 degrees Celsius.

Over the short term, the collaboration aims to replace several thousand tons of fossil raw materials in the production of polycarbonates with raw materials produced with Neste’s renewable hydrocarbons. Neste produces its renewable hydrocarbons entirely from renewable raw materials, such as waste and residue oils and fats. Thanks to being a drop-in replacement to commonly-used fossil feedstock in the polymers production, Neste’s product is suitable for existing production infrastructures and enables customers like ����AV to produce more sustainable products with consistently high quality using their existing processes.

Promoting the use of sustainable materials

“The polymers and chemicals industries will play a major role in the circular economy and fight against climate change. That is why Neste is committed to supporting the industry forerunners like ����AV on their sustainability journey,” says Neste’s President and CEO Peter Vanacker. “Our collaboration enables ����AV to play a significant role in providing climate-friendlier raw materials to leading brands and help them reach their materials-related sustainability targets. With ����AV, the positive impact provided by Neste’s renewable hydrocarbons is expanded beyond the field of polyolefins, showing the product’s value and compatibility with more complex value chains.”

"With this collaboration we are emphasizing our intention to make our production more sustainable and to drive forward the change to a circular economy. Using alternative raw materials more intensively as we are doing is an important basis for this,” said ����AV´s CEO Dr. Markus Steilemann. "We are fully committed to working with many partners to manage the transition to a circular economy, the great overall social project of the coming years and decades. To this end, we are also cooperating with upstream partners such as Neste to meet our own raw material requirements from renewable sources to an even greater extent. By transforming our production, we are helping important industrial sectors such as the automotive and electronics industries achieve greater sustainability and reduce the dependence on crude oil.”

In the future, both companies intend to expand the scope of their partnership, also with regard to other types of polymers. At the same time, they are inviting other stakeholders along the value chains to cooperate.