Biomass Balance: An Innovative
and Complementary Method for Using
Biomass as Feedstock in the Chemical
Industry
Christian Krüger, Andreas Kicherer, Claudius Kormann
and Nikolaus Raupp
Abstract Fossil resource and greenhouse gas savings can be claimed when certified biomass is co-fed with fossil raw materials into a highly efficient interlinked
production network. BASF and partners have developed a novel biomass balance
certification standard for chemical synthesis. It offers a reliable response to customers and end consumers who are increasingly interested in solutions that are
based on renewable feedstock without compromising resource efficiency and performance. The new standard describes how renewable feedstock is attributed to a
given sales product. Existing products can thus be derived from biomass and
provided with third-party certification. Highest technical product standards can be
maintained while fostering the strategic goals of a bio-economy, often requested
from different stakeholders.
1 BASF’s Biomass Balance Approach
The Circular Economy (CE) concept has gained a broad momentum in politics,
industry, and society within the past few years [1]. One of the six levers is the shift to
renewable energy and materials, which allow companies to reclaim, retain, and
regenerate the health of ecosystems. For the chemical industry, it is still a big challenge
to use renewable feedstocks. Bio-based chemistry is currently no solution to a rapid
switch to renewable feedstocks because of fundamental limits. Only some products
can be produced and large investments must be executed in R&D and production
assets. BASF found a concept to introduce biomass by using existing chemical
pathways in a cost-efficient way. The sustainability offeedstocks and the mass balance
between feedstocks and final products is proven by an independent certificate:
C. Krüger (&) Á A. Kicherer Á C. Kormann
BASF SE, Sustainability Strategy, 67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany
e-mail: christian.krueger@basf.com
N. Raupp
BASF SE, Global Sustainability Manager Dispersions & Pigments,
67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany
© The Author(s) 2018
E. Benetto et al. (eds.), Designing Sustainable Technologies,
Products and Policies, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66981-6_12
101
and Complementary Method for Using
Biomass as Feedstock in the Chemical
Industry
Christian Krüger, Andreas Kicherer, Claudius Kormann
and Nikolaus Raupp
Abstract Fossil resource and greenhouse gas savings can be claimed when certified biomass is co-fed with fossil raw materials into a highly efficient interlinked
production network. BASF and partners have developed a novel biomass balance
certification standard for chemical synthesis. It offers a reliable response to customers and end consumers who are increasingly interested in solutions that are
based on renewable feedstock without compromising resource efficiency and performance. The new standard describes how renewable feedstock is attributed to a
given sales product. Existing products can thus be derived from biomass and
provided with third-party certification. Highest technical product standards can be
maintained while fostering the strategic goals of a bio-economy, often requested
from different stakeholders.
1 BASF’s Biomass Balance Approach
The Circular Economy (CE) concept has gained a broad momentum in politics,
industry, and society within the past few years [1]. One of the six levers is the shift to
renewable energy and materials, which allow companies to reclaim, retain, and
regenerate the health of ecosystems. For the chemical industry, it is still a big challenge
to use renewable feedstocks. Bio-based chemistry is currently no solution to a rapid
switch to renewable feedstocks because of fundamental limits. Only some products
can be produced and large investments must be executed in R&D and production
assets. BASF found a concept to introduce biomass by using existing chemical
pathways in a cost-efficient way. The sustainability offeedstocks and the mass balance
between feedstocks and final products is proven by an independent certificate:
C. Krüger (&) Á A. Kicherer Á C. Kormann
BASF SE, Sustainability Strategy, 67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany
e-mail: christian.krueger@basf.com
N. Raupp
BASF SE, Global Sustainability Manager Dispersions & Pigments,
67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany
© The Author(s) 2018
E. Benetto et al. (eds.), Designing Sustainable Technologies,
Products and Policies, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66981-6_12
101