BASF establishes speciality amine production plant in Ludwigshafen
BASF’s Intermediates division develops, produces and markets more than 700 intermediates, including amines, diols, polyalcohols and acids
Manufacturing at BASF’s world-scale plant for the production of speciality amines in Ludwigshafen, Germany is now underway. Offering a product range of about 15 amines for different applications, the multiproduct plant can produce approximately 12,000 metric tons per year.
Owing to its high flexibility, the plant can also be used to produce new speciality amines. The major applications are currently in the construction, automotive, crop protection and pharmaceutical industries. With the new facility, BASF expands its global production network for amines with plants in Ludwigshafen and Schwarzheide (Germany), Antwerp (Belgium), Geismar (North America) and Nanjing (China).
‘With the new plant, we are responding to our customers’ growing demand for specialty amines, particularly in Europe,’ said Dr Stefan Blank, President, BASF Intermediates. ‘We have decades of experience in developing and manufacturing amines and, with the current expansion, we are extending our global leadership in these versatile intermediates.’
‘The special plant structure allows us to react flexibly to changes in the requirement for the various products. In addition, we can also produce commercial quantities of products from our innovation pipeline here,’ said Dr Christoph Wegner, Senior Vice President, Amines Europe, adding: ‘Being integrated into the BASF Verbund principle at the Ludwigshafen site also allows us to offer our customers scale-up services from pilot- to multi-product plant, as well as research.’
With about 200 different amines, BASF has the world’s most diverse portfolio of these chemical intermediates. In addition to alkylamines, alkanolamines and alkoxyalkylamines, the company also offers heterocyclic and aromatic amines as well as speciality amines. The range also comprises an expanding portfolio of chiral amines with high optical and chemical purity.
The versatile products have proven their effectiveness in the manufacture of crop protection products and pharmaceuticals, as well as in cosmetics, detergents and process chemicals. They are also used to produce coatings, special plastics, composites and fibres.