【Ten Years of Rapid Development in Chemical Equipment】The pilot-scale technology for the catalytic conversion of biomass into ethylene glycol on a thousand-ton scale was evaluated as successful between 2032 and 2024

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Safety first. Prevention first – let’s give recognition and support to the achievements in China’s chemical engineering technology and equipment. **********************【Ten Years of Great Development in Chemical Engineering Equipment】Continuous updates and summaries are available; feel free to join the discussions at https://bbs.hcbbs.com/thread-3576046-1-1.html (Source: Haichuan Chemical Engineering Forum) ***************** On October 17, 2024, the pilot-scale technology for producing ethylene glycol through the catalytic conversion of biomass, developed in collaboration between the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Zhongke Baiyijin (Zhengzhou) New Energy Technology Co., Ltd., passed the evaluation of scientific and technological achievements organized by the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation. The evaluation committee led by He Mingyuan, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, concluded that this technology introduces a new route for the one-step catalytic conversion of biomass sugars into ethylene glycol. It has developed a complete set of technologies for producing ethylene glycol on a kiloton scale from biomass sugars, enabling the transition from basic research findings related to highly selective catalytic conversion of biomass into ethylene glycol to actual industrial applications at this scale. The overall technical level of this technology is among the best in the world. The evaluation report indicates that this technology has achieved three innovations: first, a tungsten-based catalyst system was developed, enabling a new reaction process for the catalytic conversion of biomass sugar feedstocks into ethylene glycol with high selectivity in just one step ； Secondly, a fully mixed continuous stirred slurry bed reaction system was designed, enabling long-term continuous and stable operation of the catalytic reaction system ； Thirdly, a distillation separation and purification process for bio-based ethylene glycol products was developed; the quality of these products meets the requirements for polymer-grade materials, enabling them to satisfy the needs of bio-based polyester applications. This technology was developed by a team from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, led by Zhang Tao, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. In 2008, the team pioneered a new international reaction for the direct catalytic conversion of cellulose into ethylene glycol. Since then, the team has carried out systematic research from two perspectives: fundamental catalytic science and industrial applications of technology, achieving a series of advancements in areas such as the development of low-cost catalysts, research on reaction mechanisms and kinetics, the expansion of raw material options, and process scale-up. At the beginning of 2022, a pilot plant for the catalytic conversion of biomass into ethylene glycol on a thousand-ton scale, utilizing this technology, was built in Puyang, Henan. It began operations in June of that year, successfully completing the entire production process and producing industrial-grade biomass ethylene glycol. On October 16, 2023, the device passed a 72-hour on-site test. Evaluation data show that the ethylene glycol product produced using this technology has a selectivity of nearly 80%, a product purity of 99.9%, and an ultraviolet transmittance that meets the standards for polyester-grade ethylene glycol. According to Zheng Mingyuan, a researcher at the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics who is part of this team, this technology uses biomass such as straw sugar as raw materials, and through a highly selective catalyst system and reaction system, along with efficient product separation processes, it produces ethylene glycol. Furthermore, the bio-ethylene glycol produced by the thousand-ton pilot plant has been used to manufacture bio-based polyester, fully bio-based furan plastics, fragrances, and more. Tests conducted using polyester synthesized by downstream users showed that its quality is superior to coal-based ethylene glycol, and its performance is comparable to that of petroleum-based products. In addition, this technology has obtained over 40 authorized invention patents, boasting comprehensive independent intellectual property rights, and it won the First Prize in the Liaoning Province Natural Science Awards in 2022. Next, the team will focus on the work related to the development of a 10,000-ton-scale industrial facility for the catalytic conversion of biomass into ethylene glycol. Ethylene glycol is an important bulk energy chemical, with global consumption exceeding 30 million tons per year. It is primarily used in the production of polyester fibers, polyester resin pellets, antifreeze, coatings, and pharmaceuticals. Our country is a major producer and consumer of ethylene glycol, with annual consumption exceeding 20 million tons. However, ethylene glycol is primarily produced from petroleum ethylene or coal, and it has drawbacks such as non-renewable raw materials, high carbon dioxide emissions, and high energy consumption; therefore, there is an urgent need to develop green technologies for its production.