A world-class petrochemical hub is taking shape: Highlighting the “most” remarkable aspects of Guangdong’s petrochemical projects!

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In the deep autumn, along the shores of the South China Sea, cranes are humming as tall petrochemical towers are erected one after another; long pipelines are welded together, and a world-class petrochemical complex is gradually coming to life from its blueprints. As a strategic project for the transformation and upgrading of China’s petroleum refining industry, as well as a key initiative to drive economic development in eastern Guangdong, many of the production facilities in the Guangdong Petrochemical Integration Project are of large or extra-large scale. Since its construction, this project has set numerous records at the domestic, Asian, and even global levels. The facility is truly state-of-the-art – it boasts the world’s largest aromatic hydrocarbon production capacity per unit. The 2.6 million tons per year aromatic hydrocarbon complex in the Guangdong Petrochemical integration project is currently the largest of its kind in the world in terms of production capacity. The facility comprises a total of 689 sets of equipment, and is characterized by a high degree of thermal integration, numerous high-temperature large-diameter pipes, many large-scale pieces of equipment, as well as substantial requirements for civil engineering and steel structure construction. Its core equipment, the stripping tower, weighs 4,606 tons, making it the heaviest petrochemical tower in Asia. Once it is completed and put into operation, it will **reduce China’s reliance on foreign imports for aromatic hydrocarbons and enhance its self-sufficiency in raw materials. As the flagship unit in the chemical industrial zone, the 1.2 million tons per year ethylene plant utilizes a set of patented ethylene production technologies independently developed by China Huanqiu Engineering Co., Ltd.; it represents the largest domestically produced ethylene process package in China to date. The production capacity of a single liquid pyrolysis furnace in this device is also the highest among domestic liquid furnaces at present ； The pyrolysis gas compressor is currently the most powerful compressor produced in China. By September 30, Guangdong Petrochemical had completed the lifting of all major equipment for the polypropylene plant, including the two reactors and the degassing chamber. This facility is currently the world’s UNIPOL polypropylene plant with the highest capacity per extruder. Guangdong Petrochemical’s 400,000 tons per year high-density polyethylene plant is the largest single-line blending production facility of its kind in China. On August 21, the project participants completed the installation of the three reactors in this facility within a single day, setting a precedent for the construction of high-density polyethylene facilities in China. Technological ‘cutting-edge’ – China’s first project to use a 100% petroleum coke-based hydrogen production process. As a refining and petrochemical complex that uses heavy crude oil as raw material, the Guangdong Petrochemical Integration Project will employ a variety of new technologies and processes in its future operations. The petroleum coke hydrogenation unit is the first of its kind in China to produce hydrogen entirely using petroleum coke. Compared to coal, petroleum coke has a higher melting point and contains heavy metals such as nickel and vanadium, which requires higher operating temperatures in the gasification furnace; it causes significant damage to refractory bricks. Additionally, there are issues related to the smoothness of liquid slag discharge, making it difficult to maintain stable operation of the facility and imposing high technical requirements. In the face of these challenges, Guangdong Petrochemical Company will actively carry out exploration and debugging once the plants come online, with the aim of achieving stable production at 100% petroleum coke operation levels as soon as possible. The 3.7 million tons per year hydrocracking unit of the Guangdong Petrochemical integration project is the only hydrocracking unit within CNPC’s system that utilizes a two-stage conversion process; it is also the largest hydrocracking unit in China to employ the UOP two-stage conversion process. This hydrocracking unit operates at a pressure of up to 16.6 MPa, making it the hydrocracking unit with the highest operating pressure in China’s petroleum industry, as well as the one with the largest annual processing capacity in the system. The 800,000 tons per year styrene plant is currently the largest styrene plant of its kind in the world. The technical approach employed in this plant features some of the most advanced practices in terms of energy consumption: extensive use of waste heat recovery, numerous waste heat boilers for generating steam on-site, and a high degree of thermal integration. Construction that is fast, efficient, and cost-effective – setting a new record for lifting the heaviest tower structure in Asia. During the project’s construction, builders from across the country adhered to China National Petroleum Corporation’s \"six modernization\" requirements for construction, employing various domestic methods that are most effective, labor-saving, and efficient in order to accelerate progress, thus setting new records in construction on this 920-hectare site. In April, the constructors of the Guangdong Petrochemical project used the world’s largest 5,000-ton gantry crane, in close coordination with a 4,000-ton crawler crane, to lift the 4,606-ton heavy residue liquid tower of the aromatic unit over a period of 3.5 hours, thereby setting a new record for lifting the heaviest tower structure in Asia. From August 23 to 27, the reaction feed heater and the fractionator feed heater of the 4.2 million tons per year wax oil hydrogenation unit were successfully installed on-site, setting a record for the largest volume of modular components delivered for a single project at Guangdong Petrochemical, as well as marking the first time that such a modular unit of this type was installed by China National Petroleum Corporation. After being prefabricated and assembled in a factory setting, both heating furnaces are transported to the site as a whole via barge for overall skid-mounted installation, which reduces the construction time by more than 2 months compared to heating furnaces that are delivered in sections and assembled on-site. The steel approach bridge at the crude oil terminal represents a key challenge in construction. To overcome the adverse effects of sea conditions, Guangdong Petrochemical Company employed a series of innovative techniques, such as cantilevered platforms combined with crawler-type telescopic arms for construction assistance, as well as concrete mixing on land followed by pouring using long-arm excavators. In the construction of the superstructure above the QD10 caisson, the cover plate was installed in three days, the cantilevered platform was completed in two days, the columns were erected in two and a half days, and the upper pier and abutment structures were finished in eight and a half days – all of which laid a solid foundation for the subsequent installation of the steel approach bridge. At the beginning of October, the core equipment of Guangdong Petrochemical’s 3.6 million tons per year catalytic cracking unit – namely the regenerator and settler – was successfully installed. The construction workers divided these two units into two main modules, a \"cylinder\" and a \"head\", in order to minimize the on-site installation work as much as possible. The implementation of the modular approach significantly reduces the amount of on-site prefabrication and welding work, greatly shortens the on-site construction time, lowers safety risks, and improves installation efficiency. 41 sets of process units, 204 main unit components, and 920 hectares of construction area. Today, a brand new, efficient, and highly complex “petrochemical complex” is gradually taking shape in the hands of its builders.