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Enhancing chain extension and supplementation drives refinement in the downstream sector — Part 2 of a series on high-quality projects in Shaanxi that promote the industry’s sustainable development. Author/Source: Sinochem News Network. Date: April 26, 2022. Clicks: 20. As a major province in the energy and chemical industry, Shaanxi has an abundance of basic chemical raw materials; however, its industrial structure is skewed toward the upstream stage, and there is a clear shortcoming in terms of insufficient extension of the industrial chain. The recently released \"Shaanxi Province’s 14th Five-Year Plan for the Development of High-End Petrochemical and Chemical Industries\" calls for accelerating the optimization of the industrial structure and further expanding and integrating industrial chains; during the 14th Five-Year period, high-end chemical materials and fine chemicals are expected to account for over 30% of the industry’s total output. During their interviews, the journalists found that the petrochemical projects under construction or newly established in Shaanxi Province share a common feature: they leverage their industrial and technological advantages to continuously expand the industrial chain, thereby developing downstream products with higher added value such as coal-based fine chemicals and new chemical materials. On the basis of establishing a characteristic circular economy industry chain that integrates coal, semi-coke, calcium carbide, polyvinyl chloride, and waste utilization, Shaanxi Beiyuan Chemical Group Co., Ltd. is actively exploring the integration of multiple industries such as salt chemicals, coal chemicals, organic chemical raw materials, new chemical materials, and high-end materials, in order to extend the circular industry chain for chlor-alkali chemicals. The new projects planned by the company, including a 120,000-ton/year glycine production facility, a 30,000-ton/year polyallyl diglycol ether (ADC) blowing agent plant along with the necessary hydrazine supply, a 100,000-ton/year chlorinated polyethylene (CPE) production facility, and a 20,000-ton/year chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) production facility, have been listed as key provincial projects for 2022. “Most of these are projects that involve the extension of chlorine-consuming industrial chains, enabling the development of downstream fine chemicals and new chemical materials. Among them, the 120,000 tons per year glycine production facility serves as a pilot project; it represents the first industrial application of the proprietary technology developed through collaboration between the company and the technical partners. ”A responsible official from Beiyuan Group told reporters that this project uses high-salt wastewater from coal chemical industries, as well as liquid chlorine and industrial acetic acid produced by the electrolysis of certain brines as raw materials. It not only takes advantage of the existing chlor-alkali chemical production facilities but also enables the comprehensive utilization of high-salt wastewater. The project is scheduled to initiate civil construction and equipment procurement in the second half of the year. Following the completion of the first phase of the demonstration project for the use of coal in the production of new chemical materials, Shaanxi Coal Group Yulin Chemical Co., Ltd. will carry out the second phase of this project during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, focusing on further processing to produce synthetic resins, fine chemicals, and new chemical materials, thereby advancing the development of the industry chain toward its end stages and elevating the value chain to higher levels. In the view of Xie Wuqiang, deputy general manager of Yulin Chemical Company and manager of the Strategic Marketing Department, the industrial chain for this project is both broad and long. “Through innovation, integration, and demonstration of technologies for the clean and efficient conversion of coal at different quality levels, as well as through the coupling of pyrolysis, coal tar hydrogenation, and naphtha reforming processes along with large-scale production, an efficient and low-cost route for producing aromatics from coal has been developed. At the same time, special oil products are produced as by-products, enabling efficient integration between coal chemical industry and petroleum chemical industry and facilitating the advancement of the coal chemical industry in terms of higher quality, greater diversity, and lower carbon emissions. ”Xie Wuqiang explained that the second-phase project includes a series of deep-processing projects, with 46 chemical processing units covering four major areas: high-value-added materials, biodegradable plastics, battery electrolytes, and specialty oils. The main products include more than 20 types such as superabsorbent resins (SAP), polycarbonates (PC), ethylene-octene copolymers (POE), butylene adipate-terephthalate copolymers (PBAT), and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers (EVA). Building on the optimized operation of its 1 million tons per year coal indirect liquefaction demonstration project, Shaanxi Future Energy Chemical Co., Ltd. is accelerating the construction of a 500,000 tons per year high-temperature Fischer-Tropsch plant. This project includes alkenes treatment, polymers, C4 utilization, and high-carbon ester production facilities; it enables the extension, expansion, supplementation, and strengthening of the coal liquefaction industry chain, thereby creating a fine chemical industry cluster for coal liquefaction featuring high/low temperature Fischer-Tropsch synthesis coupled with flexible production methods. Li Junlin, executive director of Yushen Energy and Chemical Co., Ltd. under Yanjiang Petroleum, told reporters that once the 500,000 tons per year coal-based ethanol production facility is put into operation, the company will continue to expand its downstream industrial chain by producing green, high-value fine chemicals such as EVA and methyl methacrylate (MMA). In addition to local enterprises, other large petrochemical companies operating in Shaanxi also focus on developing integrated upstream and downstream industrial chains for their projects. Hengli Group plans to build a coal chemical industry park and a textile new materials industry park in the Yushen Industrial Zone, thereby creating a full-industry-chain development model that spans \"from a piece of coal to a piece of fabric.\" The first phase of this project includes initiatives related to 1,4-butanediol (BDO) and new materials. Leading with the project in Shenmu for the high-efficiency, differentiated conversion and utilization of 6 million tons per year of coal as well as the production of clean acetylene gas, Xinfafa Group plans to build facilities for the production of 600,000 tons per year of BDO, 300,000 tons per year of PBAT, 200,000 tons per year of poly**furan (PTMEG), and 200,000 tons per year of N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP). In addition, there will be facilities for the production of 1.6 million tons per year of high-performance resins and polyvinyl chloride-styrene-acrylonitrile copolymers (ACS) as part of these advanced processing projects. The 1.2 million tons per year formaldehyde production project and related downstream facilities of Baijiarui, located in the Yushen Industrial Zone, began construction at the beginning of February. The project was invested and constructed by Jiangsu Sanmu Group, and it includes facilities for producing new chemical materials such as 80,000 tons per year of pentaerythritol, 80,000 tons per year of trimethylolpropane, and 40,000 tons per year of polyoxymethylene. The reporter learned that some chemical enterprises in Shaanxi are also targeting the downstream market to tap into hidden potential and extend their industrial chains. For example, Pucheng Clean Energy Chemical Co., Ltd. plans to carry out improvements to enhance the efficiency of its olefin production systems, and to use the excess ethylene and propylene as raw materials to develop four downstream industrial chains in order to increase the added value of its products. For example, producing high-end products such as EVA and polyethylene with extremely high relative molecular mass; expanding the comprehensive utilization of downstream resources derived from carbon dioxide, and establishing a project for manufacturing biodegradable plastics with an annual capacity of 100,000 tons using propylene. At the same time, a C4 comprehensive utilization project is planned to carry out deep processing of 1-butene, methyl tert-butyl ether, etc.