The new SMTO catalyst developed by Shanghai Research Institute has been approved by the group company
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The new SMTO catalyst developed by the Shanghai Research Institute has been approved by the group company. Author/Source: Sinopec News Network; Date: 2021-07-23; Clicks: 9. With the support of key research and development programs as well as Sinopec’s major projects, this project achieved the successful development of a new SMTO-2 catalyst through the use of innovative crystallization-guiding templates. Compared to the SMTO-1 catalyst, it features significantly higher crystallinity, a greater density of active sites, and improved catalytic performance. The project also developed new processes for the crystallization of molecular sieves and the preparation of catalysts, which significantly reduced the crystallization time required for molecular sieves and greatly decreased the amount of wastewater and waste solids generated. The SMTO-2 catalyst has been put into industrial use in S-MTO plants such as Zhongyuan Petrochemical and Zhongan United. With the use of this catalyst, the selectivity for dienes increases significantly, the methanol consumption decreases, and the economic efficiency of the plants improves markedly. This project applied for 17 Chinese patents, of which 9 were granted; the research results are innovative and possess independent intellectual property rights. The expert group believes that the new SMTO catalyst developed for this project features high diene selectivity and low methanol consumption, and its technical parameters are generally superior to those of similar catalysts reported domestically and internationally.
Sinopec’s SMTO technology was jointly developed by the Sinopec Shanghai Research Institute of Petrochemistry, Sinopec Engineering & Construction Company (SEI), and Beijing Yanshan Petrochemical Company. In 2007, an industrial pilot plant for the production of olefins from methanol with a capacity of 100 tons per day was built at Beijing Yanshan Petrochemical, and in 2008 the SMTO process package capable of handling an annual methanol feed of 1.8 million tons was developed. In the field of high-performance S-MTO catalysts, researchers have developed unique nanosheet crystals and phosphorus-alumino-silicate molecular sieves with a proper silicon distribution, featuring good diffusion properties as well as high activity and selectivity ； Fluidized-bed catalysts with superior physical properties have been developed, resulting in a significant increase in strength. In terms of the process technology for S-MTO, a pressurized reaction process with high space velocity and short contact time has been developed ； A catalyst carbon control technology for the reaction zone was invented, ensuring continuous operation and economic efficiency of the plant ； An efficient reaction regeneration system and a catalyst recovery system for reaction regeneration have been innovatively developed ； A pre-deethanization separation technology was developed to improve the recovery rate of light hydrocarbons. This catalyst is produced by Sinopec Catalyst Shanghai Branch. In 2010, Sinopec invested 180 million yuan in Shanghai to build a catalyst project for methanol-to-olefins (SMTO) with an annual capacity of 1,500 tons; the catalyst production facility began trial operations in January 2011. In mid-September, Sinopec Catalyst Shanghai Branch delivered 170 tons of methanol-to-olefins (SMTO) catalysts to Zhongyuan Petrochemical, successfully completing the production of the first batch of SMTO catalysts. In October 2011, the 600,000 tons per year methanol-to-olefins (SMTO) plant of Sinopec Zhongyuan Petrochemical Co., Ltd. produced qualified ethylene and propylene, achieving a successful first commissioning of the plant. Through the technical evaluation conducted by Sinopec, the S-MTO technology achieves a methanol conversion rate of nearly 100%; its selectivity for ethylene + propylene is significantly higher than that of similar technologies, and its catalyst consumption is markedly lower. The overall technical performance of this technology is at the international leading level. This technological breakthrough has enabled the industrialization of the methanol-to-ethylene and methanol-to-propylene process technologies developed independently in our country, providing advanced, comprehensive, and reliable technical support for the development of the coal chemical industry.
The three main units of the Sinopec Nanjing SMTO catalyst project were handed over on September 18, 2015. These units include the molecular sieve reaction unit, the molecular sieve pressure filtration unit, and the catalyst shaping and preparation unit – all of which were designed and constructed under the EPC contract by Sinopec Nanjing Engineering. The utility systems associated with these units were also delivered at that time. The project is located in the Nanjing Chemical Industry Zone in Jiangsu Province, and represents the first phase of a catalyst production facility with an annual capacity of 6,000 tons, involving a total investment of 1.1 billion yuan. The project commenced in July 2014.