# Butadiene: Production route

Why nearly all butadiene is a cracker leftover

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/routes/

What this tab covers How it is made: the main production routes or, for product families, the main product types and technologies, compared on share of supply, inputs per tonne, plant scale, yield, co-products and unit cost.

More than 90% of butadiene is extracted from the crude C4 by-product of naphtha and LPG steam crackers (indicative). This makes supply a function of ethylene output and feed slate, not butadiene demand. On-purpose dehydrogenation of n-butane or butenes, and oxidative dehydrogenation, are used where C4 is short, mostly in China. Ethanol-to-butadiene (Lebedev) was used historically and is being revisited for bio-based supply.

#### Routes compared

| Route | Share of supply | Inputs per tonne | Typical scale | Yield | Co-products | Unit cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Extraction from cracker crude C4** | over 90% of global supply (indicative) | about 2-2.5 t crude C4 per t butadiene (indicative) | 100-400 kt/yr per extraction unit | recovery above 95% of contained butadiene (indicative) | raffinate-1 (isobutylene, butenes) | low conversion cost; value set by crude C4 versus naphtha |
| **On-purpose butane/butene dehydrogenation** | under 10% of global supply (indicative) | about 1.2-1.3 t butane or butenes per t (indicative) | 100-200 kt/yr | 60-80% selectivity (indicative) | hydrogen | high; viable only when butadiene is well above $1,200/t (indicative) |
| **Ethanol to butadiene (Lebedev)** | negligible | about 2 t ethanol per t (stoichiometric 1.7) | pilot | not published | acetaldehyde, water | not published |

#### How each route works
**Extraction from cracker crude C4**

Crude C4 from naphtha crackers is fed to extractive distillation using a polar solvent such as NMP (BASF process) or DMF. Butadiene is separated from butenes and butanes; the raffinate goes to MTBE, butene-1 or back to cracking.

Cheap, but supply cannot respond to price; falls with ethane cracking and European closures.
 indicative (industry standard) **On-purpose butane/butene dehydrogenation**

n-Butane or butenes are dehydrogenated over chromium or platinum catalysts (e.g. Catadiene), or by oxidative dehydrogenation of butenes. Used by some Chinese producers and earlier in the US.

Supplies independent of crackers, but expensive.
 indicative **Ethanol to butadiene (Lebedev)**

Ethanol is converted over mixed oxide catalysts to butadiene, as done in the USSR and US in the 1940s. Being piloted for bio-based tyres.

Renewable carbon, but costly and unproven at scale.
 indicative Unit economics are indicative ranges from the sources named; costs move with feedstock and energy prices, plant size and region.

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/index.md)
- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/correlation/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/production/index.md)
- [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/feedstocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/movement/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/butadiene/links/index.md)