Innovating for a Sustainable Future

Our sustainability transformation is built on three strategic pillars:

• Alternative raw materials
• Innovative recycling technologies
• Smart digital solutions

Alternative Raw Materials:  Redefining the Basics

Transitioning away from fossil resources requires bold innovation: From mass balance concepts that enable immediate shift to cutting-edge bio-based materials and solutions like our pioneering bio-aniline. Such alternative raw materials not only meet the high-performance standards our customers rely on but also help significantly reducing carbon footprint across the entire value chain.

• Our Mass Balance Approach 
• Bio-based Aniline

Exemplary solutions:

Innovative Recycling: Closing the Material Loop

One solution doesn't fit all materials. That's why we're building a recycling toolkit: from mechanical recycling for thermoplastics to advanced chemical recycling solutions such as smart pyrolysis, enzymatic processes, and chemolysis. 
Our design-for-recycling approach ensures circular economy is built in from the very beginning turning end-of-life phase into the start of a new cycle.

Exemplary research projects and activities:

• Circular Foam
• NEnzy 
• Concept for recycling a small-scale plastic-based bioreactor in a close-loop – Technical approach

Exemplary solutions:

• Covestro Circular Design Guidebook

Digital Transformation: Evolving Materials for a Sustainable Future

Digitalization is a powerful catalyst for sustainable transformation. Our collaboration with Google and other partners in quantum computing and computational chemistry is revolutionizing material simulations, unlocking new efficiencies in design and performance. At the same time, digital product passports bring transparency to every stage of the value chain. Through advanced simulation tools and automated environmental footprint calculations, we enable data-driven decisions that improve both material performance and environmental impact.

Exemplary research projects and activities:

• Google and Covestro push the boundaries of near-term quantum
• CHEM-X – Chem-X: Powering Transparency & Sustainability in the Chemical Industry

Exemplary solutions:

• Life Cycle Assessments digitalized: boosting transparency