The industrial-scale production of chlorine and caustic soda from sodium chloride or potassium chloride is carried out by means of one the following different electrolysis processes: membrane electrolysis, amalgam electrolysis or diaphragm electrolysis. The latter two technologies are outdated and no longer used in new plants due to their high energy consumption and for environmental reasons.

The membrane process is the state-of-the-art technology for chlor-alkali production. The process is not just energy-efficient, it is environment-friendly, extremely safe and also produces caustic soda of a consistently high quality.

Uhde GmbH, Hoechst AG and Bayer AG began research and development work on the membrane technology in the 1970s when the first commercial membranes became available. Since 1998, Uhde has been the sole owner of this know-how.

In 2001 Uhde launched a joint venture with the Italian group De Nora in the field of chlor-alkali electrolysis technology, successfully pooling decades of experience in this field. The two companies have constructed over 200 chlor-alkali electrolysis plants around the world.

The joint venture company UHDENORA S.p.A., based in Milan, Italy, combines the expertise of Uhde and De Nora in research and development in order to provide their worldwide customers with even better performance in the fields of planning, design, construction and after-sales services for electrolysis plants. The aim is to optimise the relevant technologies and further reduce energy consumption.

Uhde and UHDENORA both market the Uhde single-element technology. Technological experience and flexible market approaches enable both to effectively satisfy highly diverse customer requirements.