Covestro-led consortium targets continuous process for bio-based aniline
Last update on Jun 19, 2026
A 10-partner European consortium coordinated by Covestro has begun work on Bio4PURConti, an EU-funded project aiming to develop a continuous production process for bio-based aniline, a raw material used in MDI (methylene diphenyl diisocyanate), a core building block for polyurethanes.
Interested in Covestro's ingredients? Explore profile now >>
Continuous fermentation vs. fed-batch production
For formulators working with MDI-based polyurethane systems, the project's stated goal is technical compatibility rather than reformulation: Covestro describes the resulting bio-based aniline as designed to meet existing MDI specifications without requiring changes to downstream processes. The technology remains at lab and semi-industrial demonstration scale, not commercial production.
According to Covestro, conventional fossil-based aniline production generates an estimated 20 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions annually worldwide. The company's bio-based process uses a proprietary microorganism to convert plant-based sugars into an intermediate through fermentation, which is then converted into aniline via chemical catalysis. Covestro states the resulting aniline contains plant-based carbon content verified through this process.
Bio4PURConti targets continuous fermentation technology, as opposed to the fed-batch method used in current bio-based aniline production, where raw materials are added and product harvested in stages. The project scales from lab to a 1.5 m³ semi-industrial demonstration at Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant (Ghent) and Covestro's Leverkusen site, incorporating cell recycling, real-time analytics, and downstream processing. Stated objectives include higher space-time yields and improvements to the product carbon footprint.
The consortium spans seven countries and includes Covestro Deutschland AG, Fibenol Imavere OÜ, the University of Stuttgart, Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant VZW, ZEDO, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Axel'One, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, CLIB, and AEIMIS. The project has a total budget of €8.4 million, including €7 million in EU funding, and runs for 42 months.
Dr. Markus Dugal, head of process technology at Covestro, said demonstrating continuous fermentation at semi-industrial scale for a high-volume raw material such as aniline would represent a benchmark for what biotechnology processes can achieve in chemical production. Covestro currently operates aniline production capacity exceeding one million tonnes per year.
Image Credits: Covestro