BASF and its cooperation partner GIG Karasek held a symbolic groundbreaking ceremony recently at the Ludwigshafen site for one of the world’s major industrial heat pumps for CO2-free steam generation.
The heat pump currently under construction will have a thermal output of just under 50 megawatts and will use electricity from renewable sources to produce CO2-free steam, which will be used primarily for the production of formic acid. It will reduce the annual greenhouse gas emissions generated here by up to 98 percent, which equates to a reduction of 100,000 metric tons of CO2 per year.
The architecture of the heat pump and many of its components have been specially adapted to the technical operating environment, such as its connection to the steam cracker and its integration into a chemical production environment. The heat pump, with its capacity of 60 metric tons of steam per hour (up to 500,000 metric tons of steam per year), is also setting new standards in terms of temperature lift and capacity. Commissioning of the heat pump is scheduled for mid-2027.