Boiler ignition at Zhong’an United’s 1.7 million tons per year coal-to-olefins project!

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Boiler ignition at Zhong’an United’s 1.7 million tons per year coal-to-olefins project! Author/Source: Huahua Net Coal Chemicals Date: 2018-09-01 Clicks: 52 At 10:41 on August 30, 2018, as the image of the successful first ignition of Boiler No. 1 at Zhongan United Thermal Power appeared on the electronic screen in the plant’s control room, enthusiastic applause erupted from the attendees on site. This marks the entry of the utility systems for Zhong’an United Coal Chemical Co., Ltd.’s 1.7 million tons per year coal-to-methanol and converted olefins project into the full commissioning phase, which is of milestone significance for the complete completion of the project by the end of the year. Zhang Xiaocheng, the mayor of Huainan, announced the start of boiler ignition; Shi Huabiao, the Party secretary and general manager of Zhong’an United, presided over the ceremony, while Jiang Yong, the deputy general manager of Zhong’an United, gave a report on the progress of the project construction. Cai Yihua, Yang Dongpo, Hu Donghui, and Dong Zhongbing, leaders from Huainan City; Gong Naiqin, chairman of Wanbei Coal and Electricity Group; Zhang Qiang, director of the Nanjing Project Center of Sinopec Engineering Department; as well as leaders from relevant departments, Zhongan United and the construction units, along with on-site officials and employees, were all present to witness the exciting moment when the ignition was successful. The cogeneration unit is one of the utility systems in the Zhong’an United Coal Chemical Project; it is primarily responsible for supplying steam, desalinated water, and electricity to various process units. Four boilers with a capacity of 465 t/h each, along with three steam turbine generators rated at 50 MW each, were installed. Dust removal, desulfurization, and denitrification systems were also built as part of this facility, along with systems for coal transportation and storage as well as for circulating water. The civil engineering work for this project commenced on August 10, 2014. After the project resumed operations in 2017, the **latest standards and strictest requirements regarding boiler flue gas emissions were strictly followed; significant modifications were made to the design to ensure that the boiler exhaust met ultra-clean emission standards. Zhongan United and all the contractors involved in the project earnestly fulfilled the goals set by the two shareholders: to complete the construction by the end of 2018 and to have the entire process operational by June 2019. Overcoming challenges such as a tight schedule, limited funding, high difficulties, as well as the impacts of heavy snowstorms and extreme heat, they made use of every sunny day and even cloudy days, taking advantage of rainy periods as well, and carried out careful planning and scientific construction methods. By making every effort to speed up the work, they managed to turn the seemingly impossible goal of lighting the boiler by August 30th into reality. Since April, the Zhong’an project has completed the handover of 8 facilities, including a 220KV substation, a circulating water plant, an air compression station, as well as desalination and condensate recovery systems. The coal mining branch has carefully organized the washing and transportation of coal to pave the way for boiler operation. In line with the principle of \"everything centered around production preparation, everything subordinated to production preparation, and everything serving production preparation,\" the Coal Chemicals Branch has made solid efforts to carry out all aspects of production preparation, covering eight areas including organizational preparation, personnel preparation, technical preparation, material preparation, and HSSE preparation. In collaboration with the project management department and the participating units, 27 major commissioning tasks and 29 key control point objectives were completed, resolving issues such as the commissioning of high-pressure fire suppression pressure pumps, the use of tanks for storing high-salinity water, and coal unloading. In response to the more than 1,000 issues identified during the \"three inspections and four fixations\" phase of equipment commissioning, efforts were made to urge and coordinate with the participating units to carry out timely rectifications; to date, the rectification rate exceeds 85%, with all Category A issues having been resolved, thus providing a solid guarantee for the successful ignition of the boiler on \"8·30\". The 1.7 million tons per year coal-to-methanol and converted olefins project of Zhongan United Coal Chemical Co., Ltd. is a key construction project of Sinopec and Anhui Province. The core process of the project utilizes S-MTO patented technology owned by Sinopec, while the gasification unit employs SE-Oriental furnace technology also owned by Sinopec. Using coal from the Zhujixi mine as raw material, methanol and converted olefins (LDPE/PP), ethylene glycol (MEG) and other products are produced. Sinopec Engineering Construction Co., Ltd. is responsible for the overall management of the design, procurement, and construction of the MTO/OCC and PP units in this project, as well as six supporting facilities including the control room and 110 kV substation ； Sinopec Ningbo Engineering Co., Ltd. is responsible for the design and construction of the gasification unit for the contracted project ； Design and construction of air separation units, purification units, and circulating water systems for Sinopec’s Nanjing engineering contracting project.