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For sustainable sound absorption: the world’s first high-quality melamine resin foam with a reduced PCF
- New Basotect® EcoBalanced has an up to 50% lower Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) than respective standard grades
- Produced with 100% green electricity
- Fossil-based feedstock is replaced with renewable alternative from waste-based feedstock and attributed to the product via certified biomass balance approach
- Supports the transportation and construction industries to increase the use of renewable feedstock and reduce emissions
As the world’s first melamine foam manufacturer, BASF now introduces Basotect® EcoBalanced which helps to reduce the Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) of many sound absorption applications in the transportation as well as in the building and construction industries. Basotect® EcoBalanced has an up to 50% lower PCF (1) than the respective BASF standard grades because of two sustainability levers: It is manufactured in a resource-efficient process using 100% green electricity; and the fossil raw materials needed to produce it have been replaced with renewable feedstock at the very beginning of the production. The renewable feedstock comes from organic waste and residual biomass and is attributed to the Basotect® grade via a mass balance approach which is certified according to REDcert2 and ISCC PLUS (2). Thus, Basotect® EcoBalanced not only contributes to reducing the use of fossil resources: BASF also offers its customers transparency by providing reliable PCF data to support them in evaluating their own products and achieving their sustainability targets.
Compared to other melamine resin foams on the market, e.g. Basotect® G+ EcoBalanced shows a PCF which is more than two-thirds lower (at 9kg/m³). What is more: In comparison to alternative insulation materials like PET fleece (30kg/m³) it achieves considerably lower emissions. In addition to these sustainability advantages, Basotect® EcoBalanced is an easy drop-in solution: It shows the same material performance as respective standard grades. Manufacturers of applications like engine covers, wall and ceiling sound absorbers, HVAC (heating, ventilation, air-conditioning) parts and air cleaners do not have to adapt their existing manufacturing process or invest extra money into new processing lines. Most of these applications made of Basotect® EcoBalanced do not have to be re-qualified, either.
“Our Basotect® EcoBalanced is the melamine resin foam with the lowest PCF on the market,” says Tarek Abuzarour, head of global business management Basotect® at BASF. “This helps our customers to take a decisive step towards their NetZero targets. They can rely on the same high quality with Basotect® EcoBalanced to which you are accustomed. At the same time they can differentiate their products from competition by extra sustainability benefits – and they can contribute to the reduction of fossil resource consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.” BASF is the first company with transparent emission data for their melamine resin foam. This helps customers to better measure and reduce the CO2 footprint of their products in transportation as well as in building and construction – industries that play a crucial role in reducing global emissions.
Reliable calculation and third-party certification for proven lower PCF
BASF has developed a digital application to calculate the cradle-to-gate PCFs for its 45,000 sales products, including Basotect®. The PCF comprises all product-related greenhouse gas emissions that occur until the BASF product leaves the factory gate: from the purchased raw material to emissions from operations and the use of energy in production processes. Options for reducing PCF include the usage of green electricity in the production process or attributing renewable materials via a biomass balance approach. In this approach, the fossil feedstocks in the first steps of production are replaced by biomass-based resources. The renewable amount is then attributed to specific products at the end of the manufacturing process by means of a third-party certified method: An independent certification confirms that BASF has replaced the required quantities of fossil feedstock for the biomass balanced product that customers buy with renewable feedstock according to the REDcert2 and ISCC PLUS requirements.
More information: www.basotect.basf.com/ecobalanced
About BASF’s Performance Materials division
BASF’s Performance Materials division is at the forefront of the much-needed sustainability transformation in plastics. Our products are co-created with customers around the globe to bring innovations to major industry sectors such as transportation, consumer goods, industrial applications, and construction. Our R&D focuses on all stages of the plastics journey: Make, Use and Recycle. The MAKE phase is about improving how plastics are made, from product design to the choice of raw materials and the manufacturing process itself. The USE phase enhances plastics’ strengths such as light weight, robustness, and thermal resistance. At the end of the product lifecycle, the RECYCLE phase looks at how to close the loop to achieve a circular economy. In 2023, the Performance Materials division achieved global sales of €7.2 billion. Join #ourplasticsjourney at: https://www.performance-materials.basf.com
About BASF
At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Around 112,000 employees in the BASF Group contribute to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio comprises six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of €68.9 billion in 2023. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the United States. Further information at www.basf.com.
(1) BASF’s product carbon footprint (PCF) calculations for conventional products follow the requirements and guidance given by ISO 14067:2018. A TÜV Rheinland methodology review has certified that the SCOTT PCF methodology developed and used by BASF SE is based on scientific evidence, meets ISO 14067:2018 and the Together for Sustainability PCF policy, and reflects the state of the art (ID no. 0000080389: BASF SE – Certipedia). TÜV Rheinland also confirms that the biomass balance (BMB) PCF calculation method and the associated PCF reduction for BMB-certified products follow the conventional LCA method in accordance with ISO 14067 and the Together for Sustainability (TfS) policy.
(2) REDcert2 and ISCC PLUS are sustainability certification schemes for the use of sustainable biomass as raw material in the chemical industry. A certification according to these certification schemes confirms that the biomass used is sustainable and has been fed into the production system in the required amount. It also confirms that the sustainable biomass has been correctly attributed to the corresponding sales products. The certifications are awarded on the basis of on-site audits conducted by independent auditors.
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