Progress on the construction of the 500,000 tons/year coal-based ethanol project at Yushen Energy Chemicals of Yanchang Petroleum

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Progress on the Construction of Yushen Energy Chemical’s 500,000 tons/year coal-based ethanol project by Yan’an Petroleum. Author/Source: Huahua Network – Coal Chemical Industry. Date: May 19, 2022. Clicks: 21. On May 17, the two reciprocating compressors in the ethanol production unit of Yushen Energy Chemical’s 500,000 tons/year coal-based ethanol project (cycle dimethyl ether compressors and cycle methyl acetate compressors) underwent successful single-unit tests. It is reported that both compressors play a very important role in the ethanol plant. The main task of the cyclic dimethyl ether compressor is to compress and recycle the non-condensable gas generated at the top of the methyl acetate purification tower in the carbonylation unit, in order to increase the overall conversion rate of the gas phase ； The task of the cyclic methyl acetate compressor is to pressurize the non-condensable gases generated at the top of the ethanol stripping column in the separation unit, and then feed them back into the hydrogenation unit for reuse, thereby increasing the overall conversion rate of the gas phase. The successful single-unit test run of these two reciprocating compressors on this occasion marks the full entry of the large-scale unit into the single-unit test phase, taking project construction another significant step closer to its completion goals. On May 10, the air separation unit in the utility workshop of the Yushen Coal-based Ethanol project successfully completed the pipe warming process prior to the purging of the S98 main steam pipeline. The completion of this pipe warming task is an important step and a prerequisite for the individual testing of the turbine. It is reported that the turbine, booster, and air compressor in the air separation unit are all imported equipment, and extremely strict requirements are placed on the quality of the S98 steam pipelines. The utility workshop took proactive measures and made coordinated arrangements; it organized technical personnel from the power station and air separation unit to carry out various specialized inspections on the S98 main steam pipeline prior to initiating steam supply to the system. In accordance with the workshop’s steam pipeline purging plan, the rate of temperature and pressure increase was strictly controlled. During the pipe warming process, thermal tightening of the flanges on the S98 main steam pipeline as well as inspection of the steam pipeline supports were carried out, enabling the successful completion of the pipe warming procedure for the S98 steam pipeline. The Yushen 500,000 tons per year coal-based ethanol project is currently the largest project in the industrialization of coal-based ethanol technology. With a total investment of 6.98 billion yuan, it is located in the South Area of Qingshui Industrial Park within the Yushen Industrial Park in Yulin City, Shaanxi Province. The project covers an area of 1,365 mu, and it utilizes the coal-to-ethanol technology developed jointly by Yanchang Petroleum and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, which holds independent intellectual property rights. The project is scheduled to be fully completed on May 30, 2022. The construction scope includes a methanol complex (devices such as coal unloading and storage facilities, gasification units, shift conversion units, purification units, gas separation units, methanol production units, and sulfur treatment units), an ethanol plant (units including dimethyl ether production, carbonylation processes, hydrogenation units, separation systems, compression equipment, heating furnaces, and refrigeration stations), as well as new construction for utility systems and auxiliary facilities; the design capacity is 1.22 million tons of coal to be converted per year. Beijing Petrochemical Engineering Co., Ltd. (Beiyou Engineering) has been assigned a total EPc contract value of 3.78 billion yuan, covering auxiliary facilities and plant-wide system projects, as well as process units and water treatment systems; it is also responsible for providing overall project management services for this project. As the EPC general contractor for the gasification unit of this project, Aerospace Engineering Company signed a general contract with Yushen Energy Chemical Company worth 590 million yuan; the project utilizes two 2,000-ton-class aerospace furnaces.