2017 Annual Review of China’s Coal (Syngas)-Based Ethylene Glycol Industry

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2017 Annual Review of China’s Coal (Syngas)-Based Ethylene Glycol Industry Author/Source: Date: 2018-03-05 Clicks: 17 In 2017, China’s production of ethylene glycol exceeded 6 million tons, with net imports amounting to around 8.6 million tons. Coal-based ethylene glycol has become an important part of China’s ethylene glycol production capacity, and is widely used in the polyester fiber industry. By the first quarter of 2018, China had put 17 coal (syngas)-based ethylene glycol production projects into operation, resulting in an annual production capacity of 3 million tons of ethylene glycol – accounting for about one-third of China’s total ethylene glycol production capacity. In 2017, the coal-based ethylene glycol industry in China experienced rapid growth; the operational efficiency of the existing plants improved further, and the applications of this product in the polyester market expanded. New projects are being launched one after another: 5 projects have started construction, 2 projects have resumed work, and preliminary work is in progress on 14 projects, resulting in an annual production capacity of 7.39 million tons. Three coal-based ethylene glycol projects were successfully commissioned one after another in 2017. In 2017, three new coal-based ethylene glycol production facilities were put into operation: the 200,000-ton/year ethylene glycol plant owned by Yangmei Pingding Chemical, the 60,000-ton/year ethylene glycol plant operated by Haohua Xinji Chemical, and the 200,000-ton/year ethylene glycol plant in Luoyang owned by Henan Energy Chemical. Together, these facilities have an annual production capacity of 460,000 tons. In addition, Lihua Yi’s 200,000 tons per year syngas-to-ethylene glycol plant was mechanically completed in September and entered the commissioning phase ； At the end of December, the mechanical construction of Tianying Petrochemical’s first-phase project for producing ethylene glycol from natural gas at a capacity of 150,000 tons per year was completed; the production capacity of these two projects was included in the figures for 2018. The operational performance of the coal-based ethylene glycol plants that are already in operation has improved. In August 2017, the 200,000-ton ethylene glycol production facility of Henan Energy & Chemical Group in Yongcheng maintained an operation rate of over 95%, with a daily output reaching 586 tons; all of the product was of top quality, setting the best record since the facility’s commissioning. On August 11, after technical upgrades and optimizations, Hubei Fertilizer’s 200,000 tons per year ethylene glycol production plant began operating at full capacity, with an ethylene glycol output of 25–26 tons per hour. On September 1, the 200,000-ton/year ethylene glycol production facility of Shouyang Chemical, belonging to Yangmei Group, passed a 72-hour full-load performance test, achieving a daily ethylene glycol output of 675.89 tons, of which 619.76 tons were of top quality; this figure was nearly 20 tons higher than the output specified in the project design. The development and application of next-generation technologies for coal-based ethylene glycol are being advanced actively. On February 19, 2017, the new-generation 1,000-ton/year industrial pilot project for coal-based ethylene glycol production at the Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences, commenced operations in Xingren County, Guizhou Province. Public information shows that the new generation of technologies enables a reduction in the amount of precious metals used as catalysts, as well as the substitution and efficient utilization of toxic metals. This leads to significant improvements in catalyst performance and lifespan, further optimization of the production process, substantial cost reductions, and enhanced environmental benefits. In September 2017, the second-generation hydrogenation catalyst for Xinhang Energy’s 300,000 tons per year syngas-to-ethylene glycol plant passed a 72-hour on-site performance test. The load on the carbonylation unit exceeds 104%, the load on the hydrogenation unit exceeds 110%, and the oxalate conversion rate is 100%. The second-generation hydrogenation catalyst was developed by Shanghai Pujing Chemical, and it is now being put into industrial use. http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20180305/911433310317.jpg http://img.yf116.cn/image/img/20180305/912263314649.jpg