BERLIN—Covestro A.G. has devised a way to reduce its usage of fossil fuels as the sole source of carbon in some of its products by partially replacing it with CO2. The innovation, dubbed Cardyon, has garnered accolades from German officials.
A team from Covestro and RWTH Aachen was presented with the Deutscher Zukunftsprei, the German President's prize by German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmer. The annual award recognizes outstanding achievements in technology and natural science that lead to market-ready products.
"The award has encouraged us to continue working intensively on developing innovative solutions for greater sustainability in many areas," Covestro CEO Markus Steilemann said in a statement. "Together with partners from the business and scientific community, we will continue to forge ahead with the development of alternative resources such as CO2. As a chemicals and research location, Germany can make a name for itself in this field."
The prize, for innovation in science and technology, was awarded to Christoph Guertler and Berit Stange from Covestro, as well as professor Walter Leitner, who teaches and researches at RWTH Aachen and the Max-Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion. The trio, Covestro said, was instrumental in the development and market launch of the product.