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01 Technology for converting crude oil directly into chemicals: With the ongoing weak demand for refined petroleum products, the technology for converting crude oil directly into chemicals (COTC) has become a focus of interest for refiners. The yield of petrochemical feedstocks in plants that convert crude oil into chemicals can exceed 40%, and may even reach 80%. COTC technologies are divided into two categories: maximizing the production of chemicals from crude oil, and producing chemicals directly from crude oil. Currently, crude oil is directly used to produce chemicals (olefins), with ExxonMobil as a representative example ； Maximizing the conversion of crude oil into chemicals, with Hengli Petrochemical and Zhejiang Petrochemical as representatives ； Saudi Aramco is also carrying out preliminary work on COTC projects in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, and Jamnagar, India. 02 Technology for converting diesel wax oil into chemical raw materials: In recent years, the demand for diesel in the market has been declining continuously. To address the issues related to the conversion and utilization of straight-run diesel and catalyzed diesel produced by refineries, further advancements are needed in the technology for the directed transformation of aromatic and naphthenic molecules present in diesel fractions. For example, it is necessary to develop methods for producing reforming feedstocks through the hydrocracking of aromatics and naphthenes, as well as high-quality ethylene feedstocks through hydrodehydrogenation. Additionally, it is important to find ways to isomerize the branched naphthenes resulting from the deep transformation of monocyclic aromatics, in order to produce military-grade fuels with lower freezing points. Using wax oil hydrocracking can reduce diesel production and maximize the production of light naphtha for use as a feedstock in ethylene cracking, as well as tail oil for use as a feedstock in reforming. 03 Heavy oil catalytic cracking technology: Catalytic cracking is a process in which petroleum hydrocarbons are cracked at high temperatures in the presence of a catalyst to produce low-carbon olefins such as ethylene, propylene, and butenes, along with light aromatic hydrocarbons. Catalytic cracking catalysts need to withstand higher reaction temperatures and the effects of water vapor; by designing the acidity of the catalytic material and its pore structure, it is possible to achieve the conversion of various molecules in order to produce large amounts of low-carbon olefins. The large-scale application of catalytic cracking for the production of large amounts of low-carbon olefins presents numerous engineering challenges that need to be addressed. Given the wide range of possible feedstocks, it is necessary to develop reactor technologies that are suitable for the characteristics of different feedstocks and that enable efficient processes with low emissions. Additionally, research and design are required for the nozzles used for feeding the material as well as for the atomizing steam. 04 Heavy Oil Slurry Bed Hydrogenation Reforming Technology: Slurry bed hydrogenation is one of the effective methods for the efficient conversion of low-quality heavy oils (residues) into light and medium-grade oils that meet market demands; it has seen rapid development amid the trend of conventional crude oil resources becoming increasingly heavier and of lower quality. Special attention is given to the process of producing low-sulfur marine fuels through low-cost slurry-bed hydrogenation; to the technologies for upgrading low-quality heavy oil using slurry-bed hydrogenation to meet pipeline and shipping standards; and to the technologies for producing high-grade raw materials for carbon materials and rubber extenders through the slurry-bed hydrogenation of aromatic-rich feedstocks. These approaches provide solutions for the production of low-sulfur marine fuels and the transportation of low-quality heavy oil, as well as high-quality raw materials for the development of high-grade carbon materials and high-performance rubbers. 05 Molecular Refining and Intelligent Petrochemical Technologies: Molecular refining involves understanding the oil processing process at the molecular level. By analyzing the composition of crude oil at this molecular scale, it is possible to accurately predict the properties of the resulting products, meticulously design the processing steps, optimize the operational procedures, and maximize the value of each oil molecule. This approach represents the future direction of development in refining technology. The molecular refining process needs to be achieved through intelligent refining. Intelligent refining is the comprehensive application of automation, digitalization, visualization, modeling, and integration technologies in the refining process; it represents the level of informatization in refining enterprises and constitutes the ultimate model for their future development. 06 Methane-to-ethylene production without oxygen is one of the important methods for diversifying the sources of ethylene feedstock, and it holds great potential for the development and utilization of unconventional natural gas in the future. Based on the new concept of \"nanolimited catalysis,\" the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, has developed single-center iron catalysts confined within silicide (silicon oxide or silicon carbide) lattices. This approach enables the selective activation of methane under anaerobic conditions, allowing for the efficient production of high-value chemicals such as ethylene, aromatics, and hydrogen in a single step. Compared with traditional routes for natural gas conversion, this approach eliminates the energy-intensive syngas production process, shortens the process flow, achieves zero emissions of CO2 during the reaction, and achieves a 100% utilization efficiency of carbon atoms. 07 Technologies for Producing Olefins and Aromatics from Syngas: The routes for producing olefins and aromatics from syngas allow for the expansion of the sources of raw materials used to produce syngas. For example, renewable resources such as biomass can be gasified to produce syngas, which can then be used directly to synthesize olefins and aromatics. Alternatively, olefins and aromatics can be produced through the F-T synthesis route or the syngas-to-methanol route. In particular, research on technologies for directly producing olefins and aromatics from syngas is receiving much attention; such technologies not only enable the use of a wider range of raw materials but also help to reduce the complexity of existing oil-based and coal-based processes for producing olefins and aromatics, thereby lowering the investment and production costs associated with these chemicals. 08 Chemical recycling and chemical cycling technologies for waste plastics Chemical recycling and chemical cycling of waste plastics have become topics of global concern. Chemical recycling of waste plastics is a process in which plastic waste undergoes a series of chemical transformations to produce intermediate chemicals such as oil, gas, carbon, and monomers. The chemical recycling of waste plastics is a process in which plastic waste undergoes a series of chemical transformations to produce new plastics of equal quality to those based on petroleum. In recent years, many countries have introduced incentive policies to strongly encourage the recycling of plastics, and both manufacturers and retailers are increasing their use of recycled plastics. With the tightening of environmental protection regulations in our country and the advancement of waste sorting efforts, the recycling of plastic waste has received unprecedented attention; however, chemical recycling technologies are still in the experimental stage. It is expected that over the next 5 years, waste plastic chemical recycling projects, which are currently in the midst of increased investment, will give rise to new markets with a scale of hundreds of billions, playing a positive role in addressing plastic pollution, promoting resource recycling, and helping to reduce energy consumption and emissions. 09 Energy-saving technologies for refining units: Saving energy and reducing consumption are effective ways for refining manufacturers to cut down on energy use and emissions. Focus is placed on developing efficient reactive distillation coupling processes, high-performance distillation trays and packing, as well as technologies for enhancing mass and heat transfer. Efforts are made in the development and demonstration of \"95+\" type heating furnaces, research on hydraulic turbines, integration of heat exchange networks within plants and optimization of energy systems, development of intelligent control technologies and systems, and advancement of technologies for real-time closed-loop optimization of plants, all aimed at continuously improving the energy efficiency and sustainability of these plants. 10. In the field of electrification alternative technologies, research, development, and demonstration applications are focused on technologies such as the development and use of green energy sources like photovoltaic and wind power; coupling technologies that integrate photovoltaic and wind power with concentrated solar energy; energy storage technologies; technologies for using renewable electricity to power steam cracking furnaces; technologies for replacing coal-fired boilers with electric ones; natural gas turbine technologies; technologies for replacing electric heaters with thermal reheaters; technologies for optimizing the operation of large-scale turbines from steam-driven to electric-driven systems as well as for integrating steam, heat, and electricity generation; integrated applications of low-temperature waste heat and electric heating; technologies for co-generating heat and electricity from excess low-temperature waste heat; and technologies for complementary use and integrated optimization of multiple energy sources. 11 Waste treatment and recycling technologies focus on the treatment and comprehensive utilization of exhaust gas, wastewater, and solid waste; in line with the \"dual carbon\" goals, these technologies aim to develop methods for treating pollutants with low emissions while enabling their reuse. Special attention is paid to SCR denitration catalysts and related technologies, technologies for the treatment and comprehensive utilization of sulfur-containing compounds in exhaust gases, technologies for the treatment and comprehensive utilization of VOCs, technologies for sludge reduction and resource utilization, technologies for the preparation of separation membranes and membrane modules for waste resource utilization, as well as technologies for the efficient treatment and comprehensive utilization of special wastewater from petrochemical enterprises. 12 Biomass conversion technologies: China is rich in biomass resources, and it is of great significance to enhance the efficient conversion and utilization of these resources in the context of the \"dual carbon\" goals. Focusing on the main areas of efficient conversion of biomass feedstocks such as oils and lignocellulosic materials into fuels, materials, and chemicals, particular attention is given to biomass liquid fuels such as biodiesel, biojet fuel, and fuel ethanol ； Efficient production of hydrogen from biomass and its purification, biomass biogas and its selective conversion, as well as other gaseous biofuels ； High-performance biodegradable materials such as high-density polyethylene ； Synthesis of key platform chemicals such as unsaturated long-chain dibasic acids. 13 CO2 capture and utilization technologies in refining facilities. CO2 capture and utilization is one of the important ways for enterprises to achieve carbon neutrality goals. Special attention is paid to low-cost technologies for capturing low-concentration CO2 in refining facilities, including the third-generation amine-based capture technology, membrane separation technology, functional adsorbents, and oxygen-enriched combustion technology. Aiming to use concentrated CO2 capture as a raw material for the production of high-value chemicals in the chemical industry, attention is focused on the technological advancements in converting CO2 into methanol and aromatics via hydrogenation, producing carbonates/cyclocarbonates through direct esterification, and synthesizing organic carboxylic acids/carboxylates via carboxylation reactions. Another technology worth paying attention to is Direct Air Carbon Capture (DAC), which uses facilities filled with adsorbents to directly capture CO2 from the air. 14 Among the various possible processes for producing hydrogen via electrolysis of water coupled with the synthesis of chemicals, photoelectrocatalytic oxidation using biomass alcohols/aldehydes has attracted considerable attention. As important bio-based platform compounds, biomass alcohols/aldehydes can be obtained from lignocellulose, which is abundant and renewable, through a range of physical, chemical, and biological methods; examples include glycerol and its derivatives, ethanol, and furan compounds. Through photoelectrochemical oxidation reforming, these biomass alcohols/aldehydes can be further converted into high-value oxidized chemicals or fuels for use in various fields such as chemicals, energy, and pharmaceuticals; simultaneously, hydrogen can be produced via water splitting. Compared with traditional photoelectrolytic water splitting for hydrogen production, using the oxidation of biomass alcohols/aldehydes to replace the oxygen evolution process at the photocatalytic anode can effectively reduce the voltage and improve the efficiency of solar energy utilization. Therefore, combining photoelectrolytic water splitting with the oxidation of biomass alcohols/aldehydes is of great significance for improving the efficiency and reducing costs in green hydrogen production, as well as for the synthesis of high-value chemicals. 15 Pipeline hydrogen transport technology: As the technologies for developing and utilizing hydrogen continue to mature and improve, large-scale centralized hydrogen production and long-distance hydrogen transportation represent the trends for the future. Using existing natural gas pipelines to transport hydrogen along with building new pipelines dedicated to pure hydrogen transportation are the most practical solutions, which is why they attract much attention. However, pipeline hydrogen transport still faces various technical challenges that need to be overcome. These issues arise mainly from factors such as differences in the physical properties of the gas, the characteristics of the pipeline material, the hydrogen mixing ratio, and the external environment; as a result, hydrogen entering the pipelines is prone to risks such as hydrogen embrittlement, permeation, and leakage. At present, some pure hydrogen pipeline projects and natural gas-hydrogen blended pipeline projects have been built and are in operation in China, but overall they are still in the experimental and exploratory stage. Once breakthroughs are achieved in this technology, it is expected to significantly promote the large-scale development of the hydrogen energy industry. 16 Ammonia energy and sustainable ammonia production technologies: As a carrier for hydrogen, ammonia is easy to liquefy, making it convenient for storage and transportation. Hydrogen produced by its decomposition can be used in fuel cells or directly for generating electricity via fuel cells, and it can also serve as fuel for internal combustion engines and gas turbines. Ammonia as an energy source has gradually come into focus, and the integration of ammonia and hydrogen may well become one of the viable solutions to the challenge of efficient long-distance transportation of hydrogen. The traditional ammonia synthesis process is well-established, but it has high energy consumption and generates large amounts of CO2. Therefore, developing sustainable methods for ammonia production, including the use of \"green hydrogen\" to produce ammonia or the use of nitrogenase to reduce the need for fertilizers, has become an important direction for the future development of the ammonia synthesis industry. 17 New high-efficiency separation technologies: These are separation techniques that have been developed on the basis of traditional methods such as distillation, extraction, crystallization, adsorption, and chromatography; they are more energy-efficient, environmentally friendly, and sustainable. They include new distillation techniques, new extraction techniques, new crystallization techniques, new adsorption techniques, membrane separation techniques, and electrochemical separation techniques. Compared to traditional separation technologies, new separation technologies place greater emphasis on energy and emission reduction, as well as preventing the release of toxic and harmful substances; they are also efficient and simple to use. 18 Intelligent R&D Technologies: These technologies leverage intelligent knowledge bases based on knowledge automation, digital laboratories, smart laboratories, and intelligent services to significantly improve R&D efficiency. The focus is on leveraging existing refining and chemical processing projects and experimental data, as well as the hardware resources of key laboratories in this field. By using technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics, an intelligent virtual R&D platform can be established to improve R&D efficiency, shorten development cycles, reduce costs, and support the transformation and upgrading of the refining and chemical processing industry.