BMW to reduce carbon emissions from its paint shops

The BMW Group is now reducing the carbon emissions produced by its paint shops by using electricity instead of natural gas to power its exhaust purification systems.

The first of such systems are already being tested at Plant Regensburg and BMW Brilliance in China, and Plant Dingolfing has converted a painting line for the new system to be used in series production, while Plant Debrecen is set to only use the new system when it comes online in 2025.

The new system makes use of electric regenerative thermal oxidation (eRTO), a process that burns off gaseous or vaporous substances at temperatures of up to 1,000 degrees Celsius. Exhaust gasses from paint booths and drying areas need to be purified before being released to ensure that they do not harm the environment.

This has traditionally been done by passing the gasses through a bed of ceramic media and heating the air up to a very high temperature. The energy needed for this used to only be able to be provided by natural gas, but now can be powered by electricity thanks to the new eRTO system.