Covestro starts up biomass-to-aniline pilot plant at Leverkusen, Germany

LONDON (ICIS)–Covestro has started up a pilot plant at Leverkusen, Germany to produce aniline using plant biomass instead of petroleum, it said on Tuesday.

Large quantities of bio-based aniline will be produced there before the technology is further developed for production at an industrial scale.

Aniline is used to produce methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI), which in turn is used to make polyurethane foams.

Covestro said it had made a seven-figure investment in the pilot plant, which it claims is the world’s first for bio-based aniline. The project was first announced in 2017.

“Compared to conventional technology, the process leads to a greatly improved CO2 footprint of aniline,” the polymer materials producer said in a statement.