— By Plasteurope.com correspondent — 

As part of its efforts to make its intermediates portfolio more sustainable, BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) is preparing to launch four products with a reduced product carbon footprint (rPCF). The so-called R list includes butanediol (BDO), tetrahydrofuran (THF), polytetrahydrofuran (PolyTHF), and N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP).

According to the company, all of the new variants will be manufactured at the group’s integrated Ludwigshafen site and supplied to customers worldwide. BASF says they contain 10% less carbon than the corresponding standard products made at the site, while maintaining performance levels.

Across industries, Verena Siegel, vice-president Global Business Management for Butanediol and Derivatives at BASF’s Intermediates division, said “growing interest in cost-competitive products with a lower carbon footprint”.

The use of low-emission feedstocks and utilities is key to achieving the carbon reduction, the Ludwigshafen-based group said. This common approach enables manufacturers supplying diverse markets such as automotive, pharmaceuticals, electronics, textiles, and consumer goods to reduce Scope 3 CO₂ emissions without modifying existing formulations or production processes.

Related: EU imposes provisional countervailing duties on imports from China, US, Saudi Arabia

BASF added that its PCF calculation does not include downstream value chain emissions, such as transport to customers, further processing, or end-of-life treatment. The methodology is currently undergoing third-party certification by German testing agency TÜV Rheinland.

Across the intermediates portfolio, BDO, a key starting material for PolyTHF as well as THF and gamma‑butyrolactone (GBL), is in demand for pharmaceutical applications as well as in the production of NMP and the engineering resin polybutylene terephthalate (PBT).

At its three production facilities in Europe, North America, and Asia-Pacific, BASF has capacity to produce 250,000 t/y of PolyTHF. The material is widely used in elastic textiles for swimwear, sportswear, and garments such as underwear, shirts, and stretch denim.

Related: Chemical industry must shift to a sustainable and low-emissions model

The chemical is also a key building block for the thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU), which are used in abrasion-resistant hoses, films, and cable sheathing, particularly in automotive applications. In addition, it is used in polyetheresters, polyetheramides, and cast elastomers such as those found in skateboard and inline skate wheels.

NMP, an aprotic and highly polar solvent, is used across a wide range of industries. Applications include pharmaceutical production, specialised filtration membranes, and lithium-ion battery processing, as well as coatings, inks, and resins. It is also used in certain agricultural applications as well as oil and gas extraction processes.