Review of the equipment layout plan for the coal-based ethanol project at Yushen Energy and Chemicals, Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum, completed

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Review of the equipment layout plan for Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Yushen Energy Chemical’s coal-based ethanol project completed. Author/Source: Beijing Petrochemical Engineering Co., Ltd. Date: 2019-08-15. Clicks: 82. Recently, the review of the equipment layout plan for the pilot plant stage of Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Yushen Energy Chemical Co., Ltd.’s 500,000 tons per year coal-based ethanol project, which was designed by Beijing Petrochemical Engineering Co., Ltd., was successfully completed. The equipment layout diagram is one of the important elements transmitted by the layout specialty to the downstream specialties during the preliminary design phase; the work of numerous downstream specialties is also carried out based on this diagram. Therefore, the project team requires the layout specialty to complete the equipment layout diagram as soon as possible. Compared with the 100,000 tons/year syngas-to-ethanol project (designed by our company and now in operation), the 500,000 tons/year coal-based ethanol project features significant process changes, a large number of equipment units with large dimensions, as well as many large-diameter pipelines, which poses considerable challenges to equipment layout and piping design. The increase in the size of the equipment and pipelines of the unit results in a significant increase in its floor area as well. The four main unit systems were divided from a single large framework designed for 100,000 tons of ethanol into three separate units: the dimethyl ether unit, the carbonylation unit, and the hydrogenation and separation unit. Due to the short timeline for this preliminary design phase, reviewers from various departments worked overtime to meet the required review deadlines, thereby laying a solid foundation for completing the preliminary design by the end of August. Once the layout plan for the equipment is completed, it will lay the foundation for cost estimation and the progress of various subsequent tasks. The layout of equipment and piping design must be carefully aligned with the requirements of the process flow. Gravity-fed pipelines that utilize relative height differences between equipment units are commonly used, which poses significant difficulties and challenges regarding equipment layout and space requirements. After repeated adjustments and considerations by the engineers, the design was ultimately optimized: the height of the tower was reduced, **which saved space and lowered costs.