Expert in modified bitumen 

With low CO2 emissions and MKI value

As the European market leader in bitumen, TotalEnergies is closely involved in making the road construction industry more sustainable in many countries. While the company with French roots has relatively many refineries in Europe, it also has a number of production sites where very special products are made, such as modified bitumen. Products characterized by low CO2 emissions and EQI values and developed in its three research centers in the United Kingdom, Germany and France. Anton Kroon, bitumen manager at TotalEnergies, updates us on the latest developments.

In addition to supplying standard PEN bitumen straight from refinery, TotalEnergies invests heavily in product development of specialty bitumen aimed at sustainability and reducing carbon footprint. "We are one of the biggest in Europe in that field," says Anton. "From January 1, 2025, road construction Netherlands will switch to Warm Mix Asphalt. In other words, the maximum temperature at which asphalt can be produced will be lowered to 140 degrees Celsius. We were ready years ago with our ECO2 technology, a now common technique in the United Kingdom, to lower the temperature. The Netherlands was not ready for it at the time. The product is ready-to-use, allowing asphalt plants to produce in the same way they are used to, but at a lower temperature. The ECO2 technology is available for both regular PEN bitumen and modified variants."

Extend lifespan

Another development from TotalEnergies in the context of a more sustainable and circular road infrastructure is the so-called Long Life technology. "With this technique we can extend the lifespan of roads. Basically, with this technique we significantly slow down the oxidation process, which benefits the life of the asphalt," Anton explains. "Seven years ago we started developing this and after several tests and trials in the asphalt, we now have a finished product that we will produce on an industrial scale. In Germany it has been received with open arms and is widely used. Now we are also going to introduce it to the Dutch market. We have high expectations for it. Just like our Low Carbon (LC) bitumen with a certain percentage of biomaterial, which we will launch later this year. We have always been careful about admixing biomaterial because of the high quality we strive for. With our LC bitumen, we are able to achieve a very low MKI value without compromising on quality."

Brunsbüttel

Almost all of the aforementioned technologies were developed at TotalEnergies' site in Brunsbüttel, Germany. And not without reason. Anton explained. "Traditional refineries are designed for fuels with bitumen as a byproduct. In contrast, our Brunsbüttel site is designed to make bitumen. A substantially different starting point. In doing so, we use a fixed Crude Oil source, which is transported via a direct pipeline from a source in the North Sea to our Brunsbüttel site. This special Crude Oil, called Mittelplatte, is ideally suited for the production of bitumen in a consistent quality. The bitumen quality of 5 years ago will still be available 10 years from now. That makes it very interesting for road construction."

TotalEnergies markets the technologies modularly. "For example, we can provide LC bitumen in Long Life with ECO2 technology. Or you can choose only ECO2 in combination with LC or any other selection. That's what we push for. And because we as TotalEnergies have local representation in every European country, we can also speak to our customers in their native language and provide support. If a customer in the Netherlands is facing a challenge today, it's just a matter of making a phone call and one of our consultants will be on their doorstep immediately, or the very next day. That is also the added value of TotalEnergies."