On the way to rethink plastics

Floating plastic bottles in the ocean, bags and fishing nets in the middle of the sea or carelessly disposed plastic products on the streets – almost everyone has seen the pictures. But pellets from plastic production also find their way into the environment. As partner of an initiative against pellet loss, BASF contributes to prevent this development.

For challenging E&E components, BASF has now developed the high-flow Ultrason® D 1010 G6 U40. The blend based on polyethersulfone (PESU) is optimized to meet special needs for easy injection molding of energy-efficient parts in data and energy transmission, smart electronics and e-mobility. Because of its excellent flowability at lower processing temperatures the new BASF thermoplastic gives manufacturers greater flexibility when designing sophisticated switches, circuit breakers and sensors as well as IGBTs and semi-conductor parts like burn-in test sockets. Ultrason® D 1010 G6 U40 shows stable electrical properties at elevated temperatures with a high relative thermal index (RTI) and a higher comparative tracking index (CTI) than polyetherimide (PEI) and polyphenylenesulfide (PPS).

All BASF's European production sites for engineering plastics, polystyrene, expandable polystyrene, polyurethane, thermoplastics polyurethanes, polyamides and specialty polymers are now certified by independent third parties according to the Operation Clean Sweep ^® (OCS) standard. "With the successful certification of the polyamide production in Antwerp, the final milestone of this important project has been reached. We are delighted with this great achievement together with all teams involved in the proper handling of plastic pellets," says Sophie Van Dyck, Vice President Operations Polyamides & Precursors Antwerp. In total, 16 production plants for plastic pellets were certified at six BASF production sites in Europe.

Ludwigshafen, Germany/Shanghai, China: BASF announced the start-up of the world’s first commercial loopamid^® plant. The production facility at the Caojing site in Shanghai, China, has an annual capacity of 500 metric tons and marks an important step in the supply of sustainable products for the textile industry. “The startup of this plant once again demonstrates BASF’s innovative strength,” said Stephan Kothrade, member of the Board of Executive Directors and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of BASF SE. “As an integral part of our Winning Ways strategy, we utilize our chemistry to develop solutions for the biggest challenges of our time. loopamid transforms textile waste into a valuable resource, helps save raw materials and closes the textile loop.”

Ludwigshafen, Frankfurt am Main and Stühlingen, Germany - In a recently completed pilot project, BASF, together with the housing society ABG FRANKFURT HOLDING and the manufacturer of external thermal insulation composite systems Sto, successfully used an insulation board based on expandable polystyrene (EPS) containing recycled material.

To all industries relying on high-performance thermoplastics, BASF is now offering the world’s first biomass-balanced polyethersulfone (PESU). Ultrason® E 2010 BMB contributes to substituting fossil resources, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and increasing the use of renewable feedstock. This unique PESU enables customers in industries as diverse as household and catering, automotive, electrics and electronics (E&E), healthcare as well as water and sanitary to differentiate their products from the competition. It also helps them to achieve their sustainability goals - all without compromising on the material’s performance, quality or the need to invest extra money into new processing lines.

Engineering plastics used in electrical applications (E/E) have to show excellent electrical performance, good mechanical properties as well as high dimensional stability under heat. In daily operation, they have to guarantee insulation and therefore secure handling. They have to reduce fire risk in the event of an electrical defect or exposure to external sources of ignition. With a lot of applications, the plastic is used for designing the exterior of components as well. This is why design requirements, e. g. for surface quality, haptics, and colors, are becoming more and more important.

Fossil resources are limited. That's why we need to rethink the production, use and recycling of plastics. Find out more about how we at BASF are working on new ways to make the production of plastics more sustainable.

The journey to achieve net zero by 2050 is full of challenges and we constantly look for solutions to overcome them. Learn more about examples where plastics can make a surprising contribution to reduce emissions.