High-tech made in Krefeld-Uerdingen

For Covestro, climate-neutral raw materials are an important factor in achieving its own sustainability goals. In the long term, the company therefore intends to align its entire production and product range exclusively to the concept of the circular economy and the progress of climate protection. Covestro will offer every product in a climate-neutral version in the future.

Already today, Covestro is steadily expanding its portfolio: One pioneering example is the world's first climate-neutral* polycarbonate. It is produced at the Krefeld-Uerdingen site using raw materials from mass-balanced biowaste and residual materials as well as renewable energy. The climate-neutral* polycarbonate - which also includes selected Makrolon® RE grades - has the same good quality and performance as its fossil-based counterpart. It is the first choice for all customers looking for alternative raw materials with a lower CO₂ footprint.

* Climate neutrality is the result of an internal assessment of a partial product life cycle from raw material extraction (cradle) to the factory gate (Covestro gate), also known as cradle-to-gate assessment. The methodology of our life cycle assessment, for which external verification and certification will be available shortly, is based on ISO standards 14040 and ISO 14044. The calculation takes into account biogenic carbon sequestration based on preliminary data from the supply chain. No compensation measures have been applied.

Since 2021, Covestro's product portfolio also includes a climate-neutral* methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI). It is an indispensable raw material - for example for the production of innovative polyurethane insulating panels and sandwich panels. These have proven themselves worldwide as highly efficient elements in the thermal insulation of buildings. The use of polyurethane insulation can reduce heating or cooling requirements by up to 70 percent.

Covestro's sustainable MDI grades are climate-neutral* from the cradle to the factory gate. This is made possible by the use of alternative raw materials - based on plant waste - which are attributed to the products with the help of certified mass balancing according to ISCC PLUS. The climate-neutral* MDI and its precursors are produced at the Krefeld-Uerdingen site.

* Climate neutrality is the result of an internal assessment of a partial product life cycle from raw material extraction (cradle) to the factory gate (Covestro gate), also known as cradle-to-gate assessment. The methodology of our life cycle assessment, for which external verification and certification will be available shortly, is based on ISO standards 14040 and ISO 14044. The calculation takes into account biogenic carbon sequestration based on preliminary data from the supply chain. No compensation measures have been applied.

Covestro and LANXESS are cooperating on the energy-intensive production of chlorine, caustic soda and hydrogen at the three NRW sites. These basic raw materials form the basis for many products in the chemical industry. Thanks to the close cooperation, both companies can make the manufacturing process significantly more climate-friendly.

Covestro supplies LANXESS with chlorine, caustic soda and hydrogen from Leverkusen, Dormagen and Krefeld-Uerdingen - around one-third of which will be produced in the future using energy from hydropower based on certificates of origin.

The specialty chemicals company uses the basic raw materials supplied by Covestro, among other things, for products that go to the food industry or agriculture after further processing. The cooperation will reduce indirect emissions by around 120,000 metric tons of CO₂ equivalents per year.

Sustainability is also a top priority at Covestro's site in Krefeld-Uerdingen – for instance, in chlorine production. Chlorine, for example, is used in around two-thirds of all chemical products, including plastics. Unfortunately, chlorine is not found in nature and has to be produced through an energy-intensive process.

Covestro and its partners are helping to change that: the company has developed a process that reduces the required amount of electricity by up to 25 percent. The oxygen depolarized cathode (ODC) method has been used successfully at the Krefeld-Uerdingen site since 2011.

That innovation was based on the commonly used membrane process in chlor-alkali electrolysis, which has become a standard method for manufacturing chlorine. In this process, chlorine, sodium hydroxide and hydrogen are derived from table salt (NaCl) and water. Krefeld-Uerdingen will now no longer use customary hydrogen-producing electrodes but rather an oxygen depolarized cathode. Supplying the cathode with oxygen prevents the formation of hydrogen, leading only to the production of chlorine and sodium hydroxide. Compared to the standard method, a significantly lower electrical voltage is required and the energy consumption is reduced by up to 25 percent.

During a major shutdown of several plants in 2020, the chlorine production capacity was increased - by a 52,000 metric tons per year. This was made possible by two additional electrolysers. They also operate with innovative ODC technology. Covestro is thus underlining once again its ambitious sustainability goals at the site.

In 2022, Covestro has launched another production line for the manufacture of refined plastics in Krefeld-Uerdingen. The site is responding to increased market demand, particularly from the automotive industry. This has increased the site's total capacity by around a third and raises the number of production lines to nine.

The heart of the new production line for compounding polycarbonate is a ten-meter-long extruder. In it, the polycarbonate melt, which has previously been provided with different additives and colors, is mixed at high temperatures and then pressed out – like in a meat grinder. The resulting refined products make the Covestro site in Krefeld-Uerdingen ready for the future.

During the project, three additional silos – among other plant sections – were built. A new underwater pelletizer, which extends over several floors in the building, was also newly built. Further additions include a conveyor system with various pipes, several mixing silos and a filling line for 25 kilo bags.

In Krefeld-Uerdingen, Covestro has succeeded in reusing the salty industrial wastewater that is produced through polycarbonate manufacture in an industrial pilot plant for the first time. This will save up to 15,000 tons of salt and 200,000 tons of fully desalinated water per year. Since the recycled waste water can be reused in chlorine production, this process also saves valuable drinking water resources.

Covestro intends to develop new approaches to transforming the supply of raw materials, among other things. The recycling of salty industrial wastewater is one of them. The roll out of the technology to other Covestro sites is also ongoing. Currently, researchers continue to work intensively on multiple projects and procedures or using wastewater containing salt and increasing the quantity of recycled materials.

Covestro has pushing digital innovation forward for many years. The company continues to drive progress towards Industry 4.0. Digitalization also plays a major role at the Krefeld-Uerdingen site. This is particularly evident in the mobile maintenance of production facilities – the so-called "mobile maintenance".

It enables simplified and automated plant maintenance through digital tools. They collect the production data of the plants and evaluate it reliably. Anything that would have previously been recorded in writing is now handled digitally. This not only saves time and money, but also harmonizes the individual production steps and thus ensures more sustainable process flows.