Improving safety in the hydrogen peroxide industry: Enhancing the inherent safety level of the industry through innovative advancements in process technology

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Safety improvements in the hydrogen peroxide industry require process upgrades June 9, 2025 According to reports from Sinochem News, at the 2025 National Hydrogen Peroxide Industry Chain Technology Innovation and Development Conference held in Dalian on May 30, experts present noted that while China’s hydrogen peroxide production capacity has been increasing in recent years, safety issues related to manufacturing processes cannot be ignored; it is necessary to enhance the inherent safety level of this industry through innovations and upgrades in processing technologies. 　　“The production capacity of hydrogen peroxide in our country is expanding rapidly. There are 122 sets of acid-base alternating fixed-bed hydrogen peroxide production units in use in China. Due to the frequent exposure of the working fluid to acidic and alkaline environments, this process can lead to abnormal decomposition of hydrogen peroxide and even explosions. ”Liang Rujun, an expert from the China Chemical Safety Association, explained that in April of this year, the Ministry of Emergency Management issued the \"Key Points for Safety Risk Prevention and Control in Projects to Reform the Hydrogen Peroxide Production Process Using Acid-Base Alternating Fixed-Bed Technology (Trial Version)\”. This document calls for the phasing out of the acid-base alternating process in favor of fluidized-bed technology. It also sets clear requirements regarding specific safety measures, parameter control, and supervision processes. By standardizing these reform requirements, it is intended to improve the intrinsic safety level of hydrogen peroxide production and prevent decomposition risks caused by alkaline materials. 　　To achieve intrinsic safety, innovative upgrades to process technologies are essential. Niu Junbo, deputy general manager of Jiangsu Zhongxu Technology Co., Ltd., said that the company focuses on the research and development of hydrogen peroxide production processes as well as the manufacturing of related equipment. It currently holds over 60 patents for proprietary technologies related to hydrogen peroxide, and has transferred more than 70 sets of such systems both domestically and internationally. In particular, the company has innovatively adopted a fully acidic fixed-bed process to replace the traditional alternating acid-base process, ensuring that the system operates in a weakly acidic environment throughout the process; this approach eliminates completely the significant safety risk of hydrogen peroxide decomposition and explosion caused by the intrusion of alkaline substances ； At the same time, a robust protection system is established to achieve automated upgrades across the entire process, which not only significantly enhances production safety but also improves efficiency, reduces waste materials, and lowers the total amount of working fluids as well as the consumption of raw materials and auxiliary substances. 　　Lin Heyang, assistant to the general manager of the R&D department at Sinochem Environment Technology Engineering Co., Ltd. and an engineering doctor from the National Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering and Low-Carbon Technology at Tsinghua University, explained that the traditional anthraquinone process for producing hydrogen peroxide is facing safety risks and efficiency limitations. To address this issue, Sinochem Environment, in collaboration with the National Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering and Low-Carbon Technology at Tsinghua University, developed a microreactor-based technology to enhance the production of hydrogen peroxide using the anthraquinone process. In the catalytic hydrogenation and oxidation steps, the conversion rates of hydrogen and oxygen can reach 100%; the volume of the core reactor is reduced to 1/10 that of traditional reactors, while minimizing or even eliminating exhaust emissions. Currently, the research team has completed pilot-scale continuous tests on a hundred-ton scale based on the pilot technology; they have designed skid-mounted distributed hydrogen peroxide production units and developed process packages, and are now undertaking studies for larger-scale scaling up. 　　“Alkyl anthraquinones are one of the key components in the anthraquinone process for producing hydrogen peroxide, and their properties directly influence the advancement of this technological process. ”Zheng Bo, deputy director of the Process Engineering Research Laboratory at Sinopec Research Institute of Petroleum Processing, noted that the research team at the institute conducted an in-depth analysis of the problems and challenges associated with the anthraquinone process, identifying that the root causes lay in the solubility and stability of anthraquinone. Based on this, they developed new design concepts for high-performance anthraquinone structures, and successfully created a new technology for producing anthraquinone through alkylation-oxidation methods. Pilot studies and scale-up tests have already been completed. Compared to pentyl anthraquinone, the solubility and stability of the new anthraquinone are significantly improved. In the future, the research team will work to bring this technology to industrial application, focusing on platform technologies for product development.