The issue
The chemical industry is one of the most energy-intensive sectors globally. It relies heavily on fossil fuels for the production of feedstock, and to generate the energy needed for extreme temperatures, high pressures and demanding separation steps that are critical to most chemical reactions. As a result, the sector is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions.
Energy consumption is not just an environmental cost, but a key financial consideration, too. Energy inefficiency can erode a company’s profitability, affecting its competitiveness. These challenges drive demand for a new path forward, rethinking conventional practices and accelerating the search for new solutions.
As essential drivers of most chemical reactions, catalysts lie at the heart of this transformation, offering higher yield, selectivity and energy efficiency in defined processes.
Evonik’s solutions
Evonik Catalysts’ innovations are paving the way for more energy-efficient chemical production, whether through improving existing processes or developing new ones from scratch. By pioneering cutting-edge technologies and collaborating with leading industry partners, we’re delivering solutions that lower energy consumption and improve reaction efficiency, while also reducing waste and emissions. These advances help to reduce energy use and by-products in defined chemical processes compared with conventional routes, without compromising performance or cost efficiency.
A prime example is our HPPO (Hydrogen Peroxide to Propylene Oxide) technology, developed with thyssenkrupp Uhde, which avoids by-products of conventional propylene oxide routes, improves yield efficiency and delivers cost savings to customers. Since its development over 20 years ago, four industrial-scale HPPO plants have already been licensed worldwide.
By rethinking materials and traditional approaches, we can enable more sustainable, efficient, and high-performing alternatives. Our innovative nickel foam catalysts* require considerably less quantities of catalyst to achieve the same product output, offering longer catalyst lifetime and reduced maintenance costs in downstream equipment.
Collaboration is central to innovation, whatever the sector, and through our partnerships with major industry players we’re delivering tailored catalyst solutions designed to reduce emissions, enhance process efficiency, optimize product yield and eliminate harmful byproducts. Together with Westlake Vinnolit, we have developed hydrogenation catalysts that reduce toxic by-products in VCM production.
How this drives sustainability
Our catalytic processes deliver specific efficiency and yield benefits for refiners and chemical manufacturers, such as improved yield efficiency with HPPO technology and equal or better octane selectivity with OctaMax™ compared with alternative fresh catalysts. Our Next Generation Solutions simplify and speed up chemical reactions, generate better yield and selectivity and create fewer unwanted byproducts – decreasing overall energy and resource consumption, and greenhouse gas emissions.
As well as supporting more energy-efficient processes and material reuse in defined applications – such as catalyst regeneration instead of fresh catalyst – these innovations act as a key driver for profitable growth, supporting greater operational efficiency and giving customers a competitive edge.