Thread Content
On August 28, during the Qingdao Summit for Multinational Corporation Leaders, the world’s top 500 company Air Liquide of France officially signed an agreement for the first phase of a project to produce 300,000 tons of biomass methanol per year. It is worth noting that, according to publicly available information, this is Air Liquide’s first green methanol project in China. A total of 12 industrial projects were signed at this summit, covering various fields such as high-end equipment manufacturing, new energy and new materials, as well as modern financial services. This project was introduced by the Investment Promotion Center of Qingdao West Coast New Area. It primarily utilizes biomass resources such as straw to produce green methanol, which is then shipped by sea to key domestic ports and markets around the world. Once completed, this project will help the new area achieve carbon peak and carbon neutrality, bringing significant economic and social benefits. The production process of biomass methanol involves converting biomass feedstocks into syngas, which is then used to produce methanol through catalytic reactions. Since biomass absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere during its growth, this method can theoretically achieve carbon neutrality, which is of positive significance for promoting sustainable environmental development. There are two main approaches to producing methanol from biomass: one involves gasification to generate carbon monoxide (CO) and a small amount of hydrogen (H₂), after which green hydrogen is used to adjust the ratio of CO to H₂ in order to synthesize methanol ; Another approach is to gasify biomass into carbon dioxide and combine it with green hydrogen to produce methanol. Recently, biomass methanol has gained prominence in the international market. Although its current applications are mainly concentrated in the shipping industry, it sends a clear signal that global efforts toward carbon neutrality are accelerating. As a key component of this process, the utilization of biomass resources is increasingly demonstrating its irreplaceable value.