Chemical company Ineos will now supply Covestro with the two mass-balanced raw materials; phenol and acetone, from Ineos’ Inviridis product portfolio. Covestro employs both of these CO2-reduced products to manufacture its high-performance polycarbonate (PC), which is used in headlights and other automotive parts, as well as in housings for electronic devices, light guides and lenses, and medical devices.
Sucheta Govil, Chief Commercial Officer of Covestro said: “By switching to mass-balanced renewable raw materials, we aim to significantly reduce our indirect emissions in the supply chain and offer products with a reduced carbon footprint. In doing so, we’re helping our customers to meet their climate goals and advance the transition to a circular economy.”
Lily Wang, Global Head, Engineering Plastics, at Covestro, emphasized the further benefits for customers. “We offer them a drop-in solution that they can quickly and easily integrate into existing production processes without requiring any technical changes,” said Wang. “The products show the same good quality as their fossil-based counterparts.”
Covestro offers the materials under the names Makrolon RE, Bayblend RE, Makroblend RE, and Apec RE as part of the CQ family of circular intelligent solutions. With its new CQ concept, Covestro highlights the alternative raw material basis in products and thus gives a clear indication to customers who are looking for such products.
Inviridis-brand phenol and acetone are produced from bio-attributed cumene at Ineos’ facilities in Gladbeck, Germany, and Antwerp, Belgium, without competing with the food supply. Both sites are certified according to internationally recognized ISCC PLUS as well as the RSB standard. The raw materials have a lower carbon footprint than petroleum-based products.
Certification by ISCC PLUS and RSB underlines INEOS’ strong commitment to working with the bioeconomy and reflects the strong sustainability of INVIRIDIS™.
Gordon Adams, Business Director of INEOS Phenol, said, “As part of our sustainability strategy, we have developed these more sustainable phenol and acetone products, which we have named INVIRIDIS™. This new product range provides our customers with drop-in product options that meet their stringent quality and performance requirements. At the same time, we’re moving the industry toward a more climate-friendly economy for phenol and acetone without compromising its unique product attributes.”
