【Frontiers in HaiChuan Chemical Technology】The technology for the catalytic synthesis of vinyl sulfite, an additive for lithium batteries, from ethylene oxide and sulfur dioxide, has been approved

Thread Content

The technology for the catalytic synthesis of vinyl sulfite, a lithium battery additive, from ethylene oxide and sulfur dioxide was approved for evaluation on January 18. The technology, developed jointly by Liaoning Aoke Chemical Co., Ltd. and Jilin Aoke New Materials Co., Ltd., passed the assessment of scientific and technological achievements organized by the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation. The evaluation committee believes that this achievement introduces a new catalytic process for the production of vinyl sulfite (ES) from ethylene oxide and sulfur dioxide, featuring high atom economy and mild reaction conditions; it has established independent intellectual property rights and as a whole reaches an internationally leading level. Li Bin, vice president of the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation, Li Yan, director of the Jilin Provincial Department of Science and Technology, Qu Qiang, member of the Jilin Municipal Party Committee and vice mayor, and other leaders and representatives attended the appraisal meeting. The appraisal committee is composed of 7 experts, including Professor Meng Yuezhong from Sun Yat-sen University, Huang Yanqiang, a researcher and deputy director at the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Tang Tao, a researcher at the Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Professor Meng Qingwei from Dalian University of Technology; Professor Li Weishan from South China Normal University; Gong Chuanzhi, a professor-level engineer and chief engineer at CNPC Jilin Chemical Engineering Co., Ltd.; and Jin Zhaohui, the dean of the graduate school and professor at Jilin University of Chemical Technology. It is reported that vinyl sulfite (ES), as the key raw material for vinyl sulfonate diethyl ether (DTD) – an additive used in electrolytes for new energy lithium batteries – faces various industry challenges in the traditional dichlorosulfoxide-based production process, including severe equipment corrosion, the presence of chloride ions in by-products, difficulties in environmentally safe disposal, and limitations in product purity. To overcome this challenge, Liaoning Aoke Chemical Co., Ltd., drawing on its over 30 years of experience in the research and development of advanced epoxy processing technologies as well as its core technical expertise, has, through years of scientific research, developed specialized catalysts and synthesis methods for producing vinyl sulfite ES using ethylene oxide and sulfur dioxide as raw materials. With strong support from the relevant departments of the Jilin Provincial Party Committee and Government, industrial production was swiftly established, and the products were brought to market quickly; their purity exceeds 99.9%. These products not only meet the demands of the rapid development of lithium battery materials in China as well as the requirements for high performance and quality, but they also prevent chloride ion contamination and high energy consumption at the source, thereby establishing a green production process that is atom-economical.