Thread Content
The BDO plant of Shaanxi Chemical Industry successfully completed its maintenance tasks. Author/Source: Shaanxi Chemical Industry. Date: May 7, 2022. Clicks: 10. Based on the actual production conditions of the BDO plant, starting on April 26, the formaldehyde production unit, the acetylene formation unit, and the hydrogenation unit in Phase II of the BDO plant were shut down for maintenance; the main tasks involved replacing the catalysts used in the formaldehyde production process, the acetylene formation process, and the hydrogenation process, as well as the pressure swing adsorption towers. During the May Day holiday, all employees and staff from various departments and factories of the company worked overtime, staying at the site to carry out the maintenance tasks. At 7:00 on May 1st, qualified BYD products were produced, and at 7:00 p.m. on May 4th, the second-phase hydrogenation reactor was put into operation, thus completing this major maintenance project successfully. During the maintenance process, there were a total of 14 hydrogen pressure swing adsorption towers. Due to the thinning of the tower walls, the efficiency of filling molecular sieves inside these towers was low, so all of them had to be replaced. Lifting operations, welding work, and high-altitude tasks were carried out simultaneously at the maintenance site, making the work extremely difficult. A dedicated person was assigned by the branch factory to oversee the maintenance and ensure that it proceeded according to schedule. The replacement of these pressure swing adsorption towers will further improve the quality of hydrogen and help with the control of butanol in the hydrogenation reactor. The catalyst life in the BDO acetylation unit is 2 months, with 5–6 major overhauls per year on average, resulting in a high frequency of maintenance. The total shutdown and restart time for this acetylation process was 5 days, with 1 day saved during startup. Production technicians continuously refine advanced technologies and innovate to increase output. They continuously optimize various parameters and make innovative advancements in the activation and operation of catalysts. In this second phase, the alkyne catalyst was able to operate at 110% load for 65 days, producing 20,250 tons of BDO – the longest period of operation at such a high load since the plant began production. During the operation of the hydrogenation catalyst, the butanol concentration remained stable, the product quality was above 99.6%, and the operational stability improved significantly.