China's synthetic gas glycol technology has made a major breakthrough

Recently, China's independent research and development of a single set of the largest synthetic gas system for ethylene glycol technology started successfully, and smooth operation for nearly 2 months, the excellent product rate of 100%. The device uses the purified gas of low-temperature methanol washing device as raw material, and uses advanced syngas to indirectly produce ethylene glycol process technology, which can reduce the dependence of crude oil import and realize the clean and efficient utilization of coal, marking the key of modern coal chemical industry in China. A new breakthrough has been made in technology, and the synthetic gas glycol industry has entered the era of “big devices”.

This was learned from the press conference held in Beijing on November 28th, "China's single high-efficiency syngas gas glycol plant was successfully put into operation".

It is understood that recently, developed by Ningbo Zhongke Far East Catalytic Engineering Technology Co., Ltd., Shandong Hualu Hengsheng Chemical Co., Ltd. opened a large-scale ethylene glycol plant with an annual output of 500,000 tons. On November 13th, the production load of the device reached 100%, the daily output reached 1490 tons, close to the design value of 1,500 tons per day, and the superior product rate reached 100%.

Zhao Bo, director of the Far East Marketing Department of Zhongke, said at the press conference that the device successfully started to create a number of records: the ethylene glycol device has the shortest driving time; the product has reached 100% superior product; the realization of the ethylene glycol device is large; the equipment is all Localization is achieved; the unit investment is the lowest. As the first large-scale 500,000-ton ethylene glycol demonstration project in China, it was put into production on the basis of no precedent, and it quickly reached 100% full load in one and a half months, and the equipment was running stably, and the product quality was excellent. The process technology of Zhongke Far East Syngas to ethylene glycol is mature and reliable, and its performance is good.

Gao Lu, deputy chief engineer of Hualu Hengsheng, said that the construction of 500,000 tons of ethylene glycol equipment is a major decision and measure of the company. Under the tacit cooperation and hard work of all parties, the quality and quantity of the construction tasks are completed on schedule, and the installation is smooth. Completion of production is a major milestone in the history of Hualu Hengsheng.

Wang Yunsheng, deputy general manager of China Chengda Engineering Co., Ltd., said that the device faces three major technical challenges: the largest scale of single-unit installations, ultra-large equipment and large-diameter thin-walled tubes. In the whole process of design, construction, commissioning and commissioning of the project, through the joint efforts of all parties, it has created a successful start-up driving, the shortest production time, excellent product quality, large-scale equipment, large-scale process, and localization of all equipment materials. Investment savings and other impressive results.

According to Li Tong, Ph.D., of Ningbo Institute of Materials, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Zhongke Far East relied on the Ningbo Institute of Materials of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to carry out a large number of detailed basic experiments to make the device large-scale. The entire process package is complete and covers research, engineering, technology and production. The whole project has been smoothly carried out from the previous argument to the start of construction, and then to the operation of production. Each stage can be reasonably cross-over, in an orderly manner, and truly integrated.

It is reported that in 2013, Zhongke Far East successfully developed a key catalyst for syngas to ethylene glycol, and completed an expert review of 200,000 tons of ethylene glycol process package. In March 2014, Hualu Hengsheng carried out a line test in a 50,000-ton ethylene glycol industrial plant. In May 2015, Hualu Hengsheng 50,000 tons of ethylene glycol plant technical transformation was completed and put into operation. The equipment was stable in operation, the production cost was low, the product quality reached polyester grade, and the superior product rate reached 100%. The products were all used in the polyester industry. .

In July 2016, Zhongke Far East and Hualu Hengsheng signed a contract for 500,000 tons of ethylene glycol technology, and took the lead in building the largest production unit of coal-based ethylene glycol in China. The device is optimized on the basis of the operation of 50,000 tons of equipment, and adopts cutting-edge technologies such as DMC separation, nitric acid reduction, and rectification using thermal coupling. It is in the same industry leading level in terms of energy consumption and material consumption, and the cost advantage is obvious.

According to the data, ethylene glycol is mainly used in the production of PET, accounting for about 90% of the total consumption. Others are used to produce antifreeze and fine chemicals. As the world's largest polyester producer and seller, China is also the world's largest consumer of ethylene glycol. Due to raw material restrictions, China's ethylene glycol production capacity growth is limited, while domestic demand growth rate remains high. It is estimated that domestic ethylene glycol demand will reach 15 million tons in 2020. However, China's external dependence on ethylene glycol remains high. In 2017, China's total ethylene glycol production capacity reached 8.4 million tons, with a production of 6.58 million tons and an import volume of 8.71 million tons. The external dependence was as high as 57%.

At present, ethylene glycol synthesis routes can be divided into two categories: petroleum synthesis routes and non-petroleum synthesis routes. Among them, coal-based ethylene glycol technology stands out in the non-petroleum synthesis route, and with the continuous maturity of technology, it has become the main force in the development of ethylene glycol. It is understood that the current petroleum-based ethylene glycol production capacity accounts for about 56%, coal-based ethylene glycol accounts for about 35%, and the rest is methanol-made ethylene glycol.

Zhao Bai, director of the Far East Market of Zhongke, believes that the new technology can completely replace the petroleum technology ethylene glycol technology route and improve the self-sufficiency of ethylene glycol in China. In the next step, Zhongke Far East intends to enter the capital market and become a world-class catalytic engineering technology research and development company.

Experts at the meeting said that in the context of China's rich coal and lack of oil and gas, the development of coal-based ethylene glycol large-scale technology will help fill the huge domestic market gap, and then drive the development of the downstream polyester industry. This not only opens up a new way for the clean and efficient use of coal, but also effectively guarantees national energy security and energy structure optimization.