Fifty years ago – in 1971, BASF started up an ammonia plant at its Ludwigshafen site using a new gas scrubbing technology that has revolutionized industrial gas purification ever since.

This involved the removal of carbon dioxide (CO2) from synthesis gas for the production of ammonia, an important starting material for the manufacture of fertilizers. Today, BASF is one of the world's leading companies in gas treatment offering customers from various industries efficient solutions for the treatment of different gases, for example natural gas, synthesis gas and biogas.

Around the world, these solutions are proving their worth for the company's customers in some 500 reference plants worldwide.

BASF has been marketing its portfolio of technologies, gas treating agents and comprehensive services for ten years under the brand name OASE - Gas Treating Excellence. As an "accelerator" in the BASF portfolio, OASE products are among the system solutions with a significant sustainability contribution in the value chain. Compared to conventional technologies, OASE offers the highest efficiency in gas treatment and thus makes important contributions to conserving resources and reducing emissions by saving energy.

In 2019, BASF created "OASE connect", an innovative digital platform that allows customers to optimize their plant operations with the help of a simulation tool, store sample analyses and learn more about gas treatment technologies with e-learning materials. 2020 saw the launch of BASF OASE sulfexx, a highly energy-efficient gas treatment technology developed together with ExxonMobil that helps refiners and gas processors meet their sulfur removal targets while reducing CO2 emissions.

With the upcoming launch of "OASE digilab" this year, BASF is taking another step in digitalization that will further improve the efficiency of gas treatment: Together with the startup trinamiX, a BASF Group company, the OASE team has developed a method to analyze the composition of the gas treating agents in the OASE processes in near real time.

“OASE digilab” works with trinamiX's near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR spectroscopy) solution. It combines a mobile NIR-spectrometer with data analysis (chemometrics) to qualitatively and quantitatively determine the composition of the sample. In future, users will be able to inject the samples from their plant directly into the digilab device and receive the analysis of the components within a few seconds.

“OASE digilab” revolutionizes the quality control of gas treatment. Customers who use this service can continuously monitor the condition of their gas treatment plant and operate it with the optimal solvent composition," emphasizes Dr. Torsten Katz, Head of Global Technology Gas Treatment Solutions at BASF.