BASF
Digitalisation strengthens R&D / Supercomputer will shorten time to launch
To strengthen its position at the forefront of innovation, BASF (Ludwigshafen / Germany; www.basf.com) is making increased use of digital technologies in research, management board member and chief technology officer Martin Brudermüller told journalists attending the group’s annual R&D press conference at the end of June. In particular, a new supercomputer soon to be installed at Ludwigshafen will further shorten the time it takes to launch new products, he said.
With 1.75 petaflops, the supercomputer, nicknamed "Quriosity" by employees, is ranked 65th among the 500 largest computing systems in the world and is said to offer around 10 times the power BASF has currently dedicated to scientific computing. Recent projects carried out with the group’s new digital tools included a systematic investigation of the data on catalysts used in production of ethylene oxide. Here, researchers found correlations between the formulations and the application properties of the catalysts, which enabled them to predict performance and lifetime more accurately and quickly.
But digital technologies also played a “vital role” in the modelling of a new functional polymer for the stable formulation of an active ingredient, BASF said. From more than 10,000 possibilities, its experts were able to work out the appropriate polymer structure. The subsequent synthesis resulted in the desired polymer formulation, which enabled the creation of a significantly more concentrated emulsion. Modelling like this has now become an established component of the development of formulations, R&D executives remarked in Ludwigshafen.
As regards corporate research generally, BASF said it intends to maintain expenditure at the “high level” of previous years. At EUR 1.86 bn, spending in 2016 dipped below the 2015 level of EUR 1.95 bn, due to structural adjustments in life science business activities. In 2016, the German group’s global research pipeline included around 3,000 projects currently being worked on by around 10,000 R&D employees. Its Know-How network encompasses cooperative partnerships in many different disciplines with around 600 universities, research institutes and companies.
With 1.75 petaflops, the supercomputer, nicknamed "Quriosity" by employees, is ranked 65th among the 500 largest computing systems in the world and is said to offer around 10 times the power BASF has currently dedicated to scientific computing. Recent projects carried out with the group’s new digital tools included a systematic investigation of the data on catalysts used in production of ethylene oxide. Here, researchers found correlations between the formulations and the application properties of the catalysts, which enabled them to predict performance and lifetime more accurately and quickly.
But digital technologies also played a “vital role” in the modelling of a new functional polymer for the stable formulation of an active ingredient, BASF said. From more than 10,000 possibilities, its experts were able to work out the appropriate polymer structure. The subsequent synthesis resulted in the desired polymer formulation, which enabled the creation of a significantly more concentrated emulsion. Modelling like this has now become an established component of the development of formulations, R&D executives remarked in Ludwigshafen.
As regards corporate research generally, BASF said it intends to maintain expenditure at the “high level” of previous years. At EUR 1.86 bn, spending in 2016 dipped below the 2015 level of EUR 1.95 bn, due to structural adjustments in life science business activities. In 2016, the German group’s global research pipeline included around 3,000 projects currently being worked on by around 10,000 R&D employees. Its Know-How network encompasses cooperative partnerships in many different disciplines with around 600 universities, research institutes and companies.
06.07.2017 Plasteurope.com [237287-0]
Published on 06.07.2017