BASF to expand MSA
8th January 2019
Submitted by:
Sara Waddington
BASF has announced plans to expand capacity for its Lutropur brand of high-purity methane sulfonic acid (MSA) at the Ludwigshafen verbund site by around 65% to about 50,000 tonnes/year. The additional volumes are expected to be available worldwide in late 2021. The company’s Care Chemicals division is already the world market leader.
MSA is a strong organic acid that is used in applications from chemical and biofuel synthesis to industrial cleaning and metal surface treatment in the electronics industry. It is marketed as an environmentally friendly alternative to sulfuric, phosphoric and acetic acid, that is readily biodegradable as well as non-oxidising, colour- and odour-free and with highly soluble salts.