【History of Haichuan Chemical】The Birth of China’s First Large-Scale Modern Alcohol Plant
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On April 1, 1935, prominent military and political figures from the National Government gathered at Bailianjing on the banks of the Huangpu River in Shanghai (now Pudong New Area) to write inscriptions and offer their congratulations to a newly established national chemical enterprise. Yu Youren inscribed \"Elite of the Alcohol Industry\" to praise the colleagues in the factory as outstanding figures in the alcohol sector ； Lin Sen inscribed the words \"Seek excellence and apply it on a grand scale,\" expressing high expectations for the alcohol produced by the company. This enterprise, named “China Alcohol Factory,” introduced the most advanced equipment of the time and hired top engineers, becoming China’s first large-scale modern alcohol factory as well as the largest of its kind in the Far East.
As an important industrial raw material, alcohol is primarily produced through two methods: synthesis and fermentation. Industrial alcohol typically contains 95% or 99% ethanol, along with small amounts of impurities such as methanol, aldehydes, and organic acids. Alcohol is essential in various fields, whether it’s the medical sector, industry and energy, or areas such as household cleaning, personal care, and food. Our country was one of the first in the world to invent the technique of fermenting grains to produce alcohol; the use of distillation for making liquor also has a history of a thousand years. However, in the early 20th century, the alcohol factories established by Chinese people were generally small in scale, and the market demand was met through imports, with annual import volumes reaching as high as 200,000 liters. In the 1920s and 1930s, the National Government gradually realized the importance of establishing its own alcohol industry and accelerated efforts to make it self-sufficient. The Huang family of Indonesian Chinese, known as the \"King of Sugar in Indonesia,\" was the most influential overseas Chinese business community at that time. Huang Zongxiao, the third-generation leader of the family, and Huang Jiangquan, the agent of Jianyuan Industry in Southeast Asia, jointly established China Alcohol Factory in Shanghai with the Ministry of Industry after conducting on-site inspections. In its first year of operation, the alcohol factory in China was able to produce 30,000 liters of alcohol per day, with a purity level of 96.7%; the quality of this alcohol was on par with that of the world’s most advanced facilities. With the most advanced technology, equipment, and management, this factory has achieved self-sufficiency in China’s alcohol industry from the very beginning. The development of alcohol factories in China spurred the growth of the chemical industry at that time; as Tang Xiangxian, the factory manager at that time, put it, it marked a new era for China’s chemical industry.
Chinese Alcohol Factories · Timeline: 1928 – Industrial concept. Kong Xiangxi proposed establishing nine key industries, including \"the creation of state-owned alcohol factories.\" 1930: Scientific exploration – Chen Feisheng established an alcohol testing factory for practical production and theoretical research. 1933: Industrial investment – At the proposal of the Ministry of Industry and with the approval of the Executive Yuan, a Chinese alcohol factory was established in collaboration with Indonesian Chinese businessmen. 1934: Foundation laid and construction began. In May, work started with a foundation-laying ceremony ； In June, Chen Feisheng was appointed as Chief Chemical Engineer ； In November, mechanical installation was completed ； It was officially put into operation on December 1st. In 1935, to mark the opening, important military and political figures from the National Government gathered at China Alcohol Factory and left inscriptions to offer their congratulations. The then Minister of Industry delivered a speech, highly praising the significance of establishing alcohol factories in China. In 1937, it was damaged in a bombing attack. On September 13, Japanese planes bombed the Bailianjing area in the demilitarized zone; more than 10 shells hit the premises of the Chinese alcohol factory, damaging the laboratories and some of the outdoor storage tanks. In 1937, in a call for support, Wei Yanshou, the chief engineer of Chinese alcohol factories, urged that it was necessary to establish more alcohol production plants in the rear areas during the prolonged period of war. ” In 1947, during the post-war recovery period, the patriotic overseas Chinese Dong Yinchu (who later became the chairman of the CCPIT) took control of the China Alcohol Factory. He raised funds and recruited a group of experts to conduct experiments, with the aim of reviving the factory. 1954: Public-private partnership; the public-private partnership was restructured into the Shanghai Solvent Factory. Through **investment and renovation, it became a key force in China’s chemical industry.