LANXESS is taking another step towards lower-carbon production at its Krefeld-Uerdingen site in Germany. The specialty chemicals company replaced natural gas with hydrogen to dry its iron oxide pigments. As a result, the spray dryer has become one of the first large-scale industrial plants in Germany to use hydrogen as a fuel in continuous operation. LANXESS expects the switch to reduce its carbon footprint by around 6,000 metric tons per year.
Hydrogen Supplied Directly by Covestro
LANXESS sources the hydrogen from chlorine electrolysis at the neighbouring Covestro plant. A dedicated pipeline transports the hydrogen directly to the LANXESS production facility. This close integration between the two plants provides a reliable hydrogen supply while taking advantage of existing infrastructure at the Krefeld-Uerdingen Verbund site. “Switching from a natural gas burner to a hydrogen burner is a significant technological step towards low-greenhouse-gas processes,” says Michael Ertl, Head of the Inorganic Pigments business unit at LANXESS. “We are proving that decarbonizing industry works not only in pilot projects, but also in the day-to-day operation of large production facilities,” added Ertl.
Hydrogen Burner Enables Industrial Decarbonisation
LANXESS installed the hydrogen burner at the end of 2025 and has gradually brought the system into operation. The company designed the system to run entirely on hydrogen.
The conversion required several technical modifications, including:
A dedicated hydrogen supply line
An adapted hydrogen burner
New measurement and control technology
Additional safety systems
Enhanced process-control systems
Together, these upgrades allow LANXESS to integrate hydrogen into continuous industrial production while maintaining the required operating and safety standards.
Verbund Integration Supports Hydrogen Transition
The close integration of the Krefeld-Uerdingen Verbund site has played an important role in the project’s implementation. Short pipeline routes, shared infrastructure and established safety systems help ensure a dependable hydrogen supply. “The project shows that industrial partners at a Verbund site can particularly successfully shape the transition to climate-friendly production,” says Rob Eek, Production Manager at Covestro in Krefeld-Uerdingen. LANXESS and Covestro have maintained a long-standing production partnership at the site. Covestro supplies nitrobenzene, which LANXESS uses to manufacture iron oxide pigments. During this process, LANXESS produces aniline as a byproduct and returns it to Covestro for use as an important raw material in plastics production. The introduction of hydrogen into the spray-drying process now adds another climate-focused element to this integrated production model.
Large-Scale Iron Oxide Pigment Production
LANXESS operates one of the world’s leading inorganic pigment businesses, producing iron oxide and chromium oxide pigments for construction materials, paints and coatings, plastics and other specialty applications. The company operates the world’s largest iron oxide pigment production facility at Krefeld-Uerdingen, where it has manufactured these pigments for around 100 years. LANXESS iron oxide pigments have a particularly low carbon footprint compared with products from other manufacturers in the industry.
Laux Process Improves Energy Efficiency
The company attributes part of this advantage to the Laux process used at the site. Unlike alternative production methods, the process generates virtually no waste and uses energy efficiently. The combination of the Laux process and hydrogen-powered drying can therefore further support LANXESS’s efforts to reduce emissions from iron oxide pigment production. As per the press release, by moving hydrogen technology from pilot-scale applications into continuous large-scale production, LANXESS is demonstrating how existing industrial facilities can integrate alternative fuels while reducing their dependence on natural gas.
