Petrochemistry
Transportation, packaging, textiles, paints, electronics, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals are just a few examples of the wide variety of products that are part of our everyday lives as a matter of course, but would be impossible without petrochemical precursors.
Historically, petrochemicals (ancient Greek petros 'rock') refers to the production of chemical products from natural gas and suitable fractions of crude oil.
We are currently tackling the very big task of reducing petroleum and other fossil carbon carriers in the petrochemical industry and replacing them completely in the long term.
There are many ways or building blocks to achieve this goal, such as the use of renewable raw materials and the development of recyclable plastics. We discuss approaches from science and industry, academic research, pilot projects and development ideas to promote applied research and rapid implementation.
To this end, the Department of Petrochemistry regularly organizes symposia in cooperation with international partners on topics such as future raw material sources, circular economy, and the role of catalysis in the energy transition.
Our conferences address an audience from both industry and academia, and we ensure that the selection of papers is balanced between basic research and application-oriented topics.
