Chemical R&D Booms In China

Three major Western chemical makers are stepping up their research presence in China. BASF has broken ground on the second phase of its Innovation Campus Asia Pacific in the Pudong district of Shanghai. The $120 million project will add an R&D building and auxiliary facilities to the 18-month-old site by the end of 2015. Researchers will focus on advanced materials while adding new areas of inquiry such as formulations and chemical engineering, BASF says. Air Liquide, meanwhile, recently broke ground on its Shanghai Research & Technology Center, a $33 million facility in the city’s Minhang district. Energy efficiency, CO₂ emission reduction, water treatment, and food preservation are some of the fields to be studied. Also in Pudong, FMC has opened its Asia Innovation Center, home to more than 180 scientists and other personnel. Labs in the nine-story building will develop crop protection products and ingredients for health and nutrition markets.