Factbook

Monomers

The Monomers division supplies a broad portfolio of large-volume monomers, basic polymers and inorganic chemicals. Major products include MDI (methylene diphenyl diisocyanate), TDI (toluene diisocyanate), propylene oxide, caprolactam, adipic acid, hexamethylenediamine, ammonia, polyamide 6 and 6.6, nitric acid, sulfur and chlorine products, inorganic salts, urea, glues and impregnating resins. The products are used in a broad spectrum of industries, such as the automotive, furniture, construction, woodworking, food, feed, solar, packaging and textile industries. The division is in a key position to drive the sustainable transformation of these industries. It is therefore expanding its portfolio of products with a lower CO2 footprint and is committed to providing a circular option in every major product line by 2025.

Sales by region 2022 (location of customer)

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Sales by direct customer industry 2022

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Glues and impregnating resins
BASF, the inventor of Kaurit® and Kauramin® glues, is the number one producer and seller of glues and impregnating resins for different types of panel boards and laminated flooring. The portfolio encompasses liquid and powder glues specifically developed to produce a broad range of wood-based materials that meet low-emission standards. Powder glues are also used in other industries, for example, to produce clutch linings in vehicles. BASF’s impregnating resins have been designed for the treatment of various papers, including for overlay, counterbalance and decor papers for the flooring or furniture industry. Additionally, BASF produces AdBlue®, a high-purity urea solution that is used in trucks and passenger cars to reduce NOx emissions from diesel engines.


Inorganic chemicals
Inorganic chemicals are mainly used as precursors for plastics, amines and other high-value chemicals. The product portfolio ranges from basic chemicals to inorganic salts and includes ammonia, ammonium salts, caustic soda, chlorine, nitric acid, standard alcoholates and sulfuric acid.

More than half of these products are for captive use within BASF’s Verbund. The remaining products are sold primarily to other chemical companies. We are also one of the leading suppliers of sodium nitrate (used as a component for storage media in solar thermal power plants), sodium methylate (a catalyst used for the production of biodiesel) and a variety of inorganic salts for different industries such as food, feed, textiles and paper.


Isocyanates and propylene oxide
The portfolio of isocyanates consists of MDI and TDI. BASF is a world leader in isocyanates, which are key components to produce soft or rigid foams. MDI is a versatile isocyanate that can be used to make flexible foams as well as semi-rigid and rigid polyurethane plastics. Its primary applications are construction, consumer appliances, automotive components and shoe soles. TDI is an isocyanate used primarily in the manufacturing of flexible foams. Its main applications include mattresses and cushions for furniture and automotive seating.

Propylene oxide is the main raw material for polyether polyols. Polyols are – together with isocyanates – the second key component for polyurethane foams. Other applications for propylene oxide are propylene glycols, surfactants and amines.


Polyamides and precursors
BASF is the world’s leading supplier of high-quality polyamides, with the trade name Ultramid®, and polyamide precursors such as caprolactam, hexamethylenediamine (HMD) or adipic acid. BASF started manufacturing Ultramid® polyamides over 50 years ago. Today, BASF offers a wide product range of polyamides for injection molding and extrusion. The product range includes PA 6 grades (Ultramid® B), PA 6.6 grades (Ultramid® A), special grades based on copolyamides (Ultramid® C) as well as Ultramid® Ccycled®, which is produced using recycled plastic waste or end-of-life tires.

Polyamides from BASF are the materials of choice for many applications:

  • Engineering plastics: Ultramid® is used to produce molding compounds. Due to their outstanding properties, these materials have become indispensable in almost all fields of engineering for the most varied components and machine parts, as high-quality electrical insulating materials and for many special applications.
  • Films for food packaging: Ultramid® is especially well-suited for the packaging sector due to its high strength, outstanding thermoformability, high thermal stability and very good barrier properties toward gases, especially oxygen, flavors and aromas.
  • Textiles and carpets: The variety of Ultramid® grades for textiles enables the manufacturing of superior quality textiles for hosiery, swimwear and high-tech outdoor garments as well as high-end polyamide carpets and technical fiber applications.

The Monomers division holds one of the top three market positions in around two-thirds of the strategic business areas in which it is active.

The main competitors (alphabetical order) include AdvanSix, Ascend, Covestro, Dow, Envalior, Huntsman, Ube and Wanhua.

R&D efforts are focused on process innovation to optimize our large asset base as well as the development of new products and applications to support the division’s sustainability goals.

(from 2020 onward)

Product group Description        Year
Polyamide Acquisition of Solvay’s polyamide business           2020
MDI   Expansion of production in Geismar, Louisiana (staggered investment approach) 2020-2025
Sodium methylate Expansion of plant in Guaratinguetá, Brazil 2020
HMD New world-scale plant in Chalampé, France 2024

(from 2020 onward)

Product group Description Year
TDI Closure of TDI plant in Schwarzheide, Germany 2020
Ammonia value chain1 Closure of one of two ammonia plants, the caprolactam plant and the ammonium sulfate nitrate fertilizer plant in Ludwigshafen, Germany 2023–2026
Adipic acid value chain1 Partial closure of the adipic acid plant, closure of the precursor plant for cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone, the soda ash plant and the melamine plant in Ludwigshafen, Germany 2023–2026
TDI1 Closure of the TDI plant and precursor plants for toluenediamine and dinitrotoluene in Lud­igshafen, Germany 2023–2026

1 Announced on February 24, 2023, as part of BASF's measures to improve competitiveness

(thousand metric tons per year)

Product group Capacity
Adipic acid2 720
Ammonia2 1,765
Caprolactam2 700
Chlorine2 595
MDI 1,920
Polyamides 6 and 6.62 925
Propylene oxide 675
Sulfuric acid 920
TDI 780
Urea 545

1 All capacities are included at 100%, including plants belonging to joint operations and joint ventures.

2 Between 2023 and 2026, annual nameplate capacities will be reduced to the following amounts as part of the measures to improve competitiveness announced on February 24, 2023 (all figures in thousand metric tons): adipic acid: 624; ammonia: 1,385; caprolactam: 600; chlorine: 495; polyamides 885; TDI 480.

© Eyal Granit – stock.adobe.com

© Eyal Granit – stock.adobe.com

Lupranat® ZERO

Lupranat® ZERO is BASF’s first greenhouse gas-neutral isocyanate. It has a cradle-to-gate product carbon footprint (PCF) of zero when all product-related greenhouse gas emissions and the biogenic carbon bound in the product are taken into account together. Lupranat® ZERO has been commercially available for the production of MDI polyisocyanurate panels and rigid polyurethane foam for the thermal insulation of buildings since 2022. It offers customers a solution for reducing their CO2 footprint while maintaining high product quality. The PCF calculation for Lupranat® ZERO has been certified by TÜV Nord.

Last Update May 26, 2023