Methane pyrolysis test plant at the Ludwigshafen site

BASF has commenced operations in a test plant for methane pyrolysis at the Ludwigshafen Verbund site. The test plant was completed at the end of 2020 and is a decisive step toward large-scale implementation which should be possible before 2030.

Simply advancing development in the existing system will not be sufficient to significantly reduce the greenhouse gas emissions further when producing chemical products – in fact, this will require completely new technologies. To produce hydrogen from natural gas or biomethane in a climate-friendly manner, BASF is collaborating with cooperation partners in a project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF; funding code 03SF0571A) to develop methane pyrolysis technology as part of the Carbon Management Research and Development Program. This approach splits natural gas or biomethane directly into hydrogen and solid carbon. The methane pyrolysis process requires around 80% less electricity than alternative hydrogen production methods using water electrolysis and if electricity from renewable sources is used, the process itself would generate almost zero CO₂.