LEVERKUSEN, Germany—After a two-year test phase, Bayer is aiming to commercialize the use of carbon dioxide as a raw material for polyurethane foam.
The company has started the planning process for the construction of a production facility at its site in Dormagen, Germany, where CO2 will be used to produce precursor for PU foam. Bayer said its objective initially is to make larger quantities of this precursor available to “selective processors” from 2015. The planned production facility in Dormagen will have a facility of several thousand tons, though Bayer expects higher volumes in the future.
Details of the amount of the investment in the project or a construction schedule is not yet available, a Bayer spokesman said.
The use of CO2 replaces a portion of the fossil-fuel raw materials, such as petroleum, that would otherwise be used exclusively, Bayer said. The chemical giant also expects the new process to provide economic advantages over a conventional production method.