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60 Years of Innovation in Methanol Technology at Chengda Company / Author/Source: Coal Chemical Industry Information Network / Date: 2022-07-05 / Clicks: 33. Methanol is an important chemical product and raw material, as well as one of the clean energy sources. Among chemical products worldwide, its production volume ranks fourth, behind ethylene, propylene, and benzene. Currently, the main downstream products of methanol include formaldehyde, olefins, and methyl formate. Methanol is one of the flagship products of Chengda Company, boasting the strongest technical capabilities and a long history. Globally, natural gas is the main raw material for methanol production. In China, due to an energy structure characterized by abundant coal, limited oil, and scarce gas, a large number of methanol plants using coal as raw material have been built. The low-pressure methanol synthesis process technology developed by the company was the first of its kind in China, and the first large-scale methanol plants built in different periods in the country were all designed by Chengda Company. The methanol project undertaken by Chengda Company ranks among the leading in China and among the advanced levels globally in terms of technical standards, clean production metrics, as well as plant scale, larger-scale equipment use, domestic production of components, and system integration. Technology-driven and industry-leading, Chengda Company is a pioneer in the development of technical solutions, engineering design, and technology integration within China’s natural gas chemical industry. Since its establishment in 1958, the company has been engaged in the development and design of technologies for converting natural gas into methanol; it has developed and built the first natural gas steam reforming unit, the first low-pressure methanol synthesis unit using natural gas, as well as the first facility for producing methanol from acetylene exhaust gases using natural gas ； It was responsible for the domestic design of the first largest-scale natural gas-to-methanol plant in China, the general contracting of the world’s largest coal-based syngas-to-methanol plant, and the development and design of the world’s first industrial pilot plant for producing methanol via carbon dioxide hydrogenation with a capacity of 5,000 tons per year. To date, Chengda Company has undertaken more than 50 methanol projects, with capacities ranging from 3,000 tons per year to 2.2 million tons per year. The capacity of a single production line can reach up to 2.2 million tons per year, and the total capacity accounts for approximately 30% of China’s overall methanol production capacity. Based on the localization of equipment and by utilizing advanced international software as well as energy-saving concepts (technologies), Chengda Company has successively developed a complete set of methanol production process technologies, including pressure conversion technology (including pre-furnace carbon supplementation technology), heat-exchange conversion technology, two-stage conversion technology, low-pressure methanol synthesis technology, and efficient distillation technology using three distillation columns plus a recovery tower. Production facilities of various scales have been established, and the raw materials used include chemical process exhaust gases and coal-based syngas. To date, Chengda Company holds over 40 patent technologies and proprietary technologies in the field of methanol project construction (including 9 invention patents), and has won numerous national and provincial/municipal-level awards. With innovation as its sail, the company dares to stay at the forefront of progress. Through years of experience in methanol plant construction, Chengda Company has cultivated a large number of expert professionals in methanol production, management talent, and engineering design teams. It continues to innovate in areas such as localization, larger-scale production, energy conservation and emission reduction, as well as improving quality while reducing costs. The company has progressed from relying on fully imported equipment to using only some key components, to purchasing only process packages, and ultimately achieving complete domestic production. It has made outstanding contributions to the industry in terms of reducing consumption and investment, utilizing natural gas-based acetylene exhaust gases in an environmentally friendly manner, integrating hydrogen and carbon production from coal gas, and producing green methanol through carbon dioxide hydrogenation. Chengda Company has always been at the forefront in China in the field of large-scale design and EPC for methanol plants, having accumulated extensive experience in the design, manufacturing, and installation of key equipment such as synthesis towers and steam reformers ； Significant achievements have also been made in pipeline materials, the selection of large-sized valves, as well as the calculation, design, and construction of large-scale high-temperature, high-pressure, and stress-resistant pipelines. The methanol unit of the Shenhua Baotou Coal-to-Olefins Project, the world’s first and largest coal-to-methanol facility with an annual production capacity of 1.8 million tons, was put into operation in 2010 under the EPC general contracting by Chengda Company. This facility laid a solid foundation for the successful implementation of the first large-scale coal-to-olefins project approved during the 11th Five-Year Plan period. Subsequently, Chengda Company completed a series of coal-based methanol projects through EPC turnkey contracts for entities such as China Coal Yulin, Shenhua Xinjiang, Yanchang Petroleum, Inner Mongolia Rongxin, and Huayi Guangxi, thereby demonstrating its professional expertise and comprehensive capabilities. In the methanol industry, key equipment has long relied on imports, and the long production cycles and high manufacturing costs have always been challenges for this sector. While developing its own technologies, Chengda Company is committed to research on the domestic design of key equipment such as methanol synthesis towers. The development and localization of the JM steam upward-type synthesis tower have now been achieved, breaking the long-standing pattern of importing large-scale methanol synthesis towers from abroad. This device has been successfully applied in various projects in Baofeng, Ningxia, and Jiutai, Inner Mongolia, reducing both the supply cycle time and investment costs. At the same time, Chengda Company has also developed key equipment such as large-scale high-efficiency synthesis towers, pure oxygen two-stage furnaces, flexible thin-tube sheet waste heat boilers, and radial sulfur-resistant shift reactors, thereby making significant progress in the localization of large-scale critical equipment. The resource utilization of carbon dioxide in domestically produced synthesis towers (Ningxia Baofeng) is a global challenge. In recent years, carbon dioxide, as a safe and readily available carbon oxide, has attracted increasing attention for its conversion into chemicals and fuels. Chengda Company and its partners have successfully developed the world’s first industrial pilot plant for the conversion of carbon dioxide into methanol at a rate of 5,000 tons per year. This plant passed the on-site inspections and technical evaluations carried out by an expert panel organized by the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation. It solves key problems related to the large-scale utilization of carbon dioxide in China, and holds great significance for the utilization of carbon dioxide resources and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the country. Based on the experimental setup, Chengda Company has successfully completed the development and design of a process package as well as key equipment for the production of 100,000 tons per year of methanol via carbon dioxide hydrogenation. With hard work as its oar, Chengda Company dares to be at the forefront in navigating the global market. Without exception, the largest methanol production facilities built in China at various times have been designed or overseen by Chengda Company – such as the 100,000 tons per year methanol plant built in the late 1970s, the 200,000 tons per year plant from the 1990s, the 600,000 tons per year and 800,000 tons per year plants built in the mid-to-late 2000s, the 1.8 million tons per year plant in 2010, and the 2.2 million tons per year plant in 2014. Chengda’s extensive track record in the design of methanol plants has earned high recognition from both owners and licensors. Leveraging its advanced technological advantages and outstanding engineering achievements, Chengda Company has also achieved remarkable results under the Belt and Road Initiative. In 2012, Chengda Company took on the design and procurement work for three methanol plants with a capacity of 5,000 MTPD in the Middle East ； In 2019, Chengda Company stood out amid fierce competition from seven renowned international engineering firms and secured the turnkey contract for the general construction of the Russian NFP5400MTPD methanol project. This project was the largest in terms of contract value for Chengda Company, and it also marked the beginning of its entry into the Russian market. **President *** and Russian President Putin jointly witnessed the signing of the agreement for the implementation of this project at the Kremlin. With the original aspiration as a rudder and dreams guiding the journey forward, the history of Chengda Company’s development in methanol technology has always inspired generation after generation of Chengda employees to determine their direction, unite their efforts, and strengthen their confidence throughout history. With original aspirations as the rudder, we set sail to realize our dreams. With the rapid development of natural gas chemistry in regions such as Russia, Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia, the methanol industry has embarked on a new journey as well. On this new journey, there are valuable development opportunities, as well as severe and complex risks and challenges. Chengdatou will, as always, uphold independence and self-reliance, foster innovation, and continuously enhance its capacity for independent innovation. In the new era and on this new journey, it will continue to write a new chapter in achieving high-level self-reliance and strength in science and technology with an indomitable spirit of struggle. Chronology of Chengda Company’s development in methanol technology: 1959 – Completion of the design (plan) for a methanol production facility with an annual capacity of 10,000 tons, using natural gas steam reforming. 1971 – Commissioning of the 3,500-ton/year methanol production plant (high-pressure process) developed independently by Hunan Vinylon Factory. 1973 – Completion of the design for China’s first methanol production facility that used acetylene off-gases as raw material – the 100,000-ton/year methanol plant at Sichuan Vinylon Factory. 1977 – Development of a combined methanol and ethanol production facility independently. The facility utilizes a stepped natural gas steam reformer. In 1978, the design of China’s first methanol production plant using residual oil as raw material was completed at the Chengdu Natural Gas Chemical Plant’s 2,000-ton/year integrated methanol plant. The overall design of this project won the **Gold Award for Excellent Design**. In 1981, experiments on low-pressure methanol synthesis using single tubes were successfully carried out, laying the foundation for the construction of industrial-scale test facilities. In 1982, a technology for producing 6,000 tons of methanol per year via low-pressure synthesis was independently developed; this process utilized tail gases from copper washing in ammonia synthesis as raw materials. The pilot test conducted at Lutianhua Industrial Test Plant proved successful, earning the project the Second Prize for Excellent Design from the Ministry of Chemical Industry, the Second Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress in Sichuan Province, and the **Second Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress**. In 1990, China’s first methanol plant utilizing natural gas as raw material and operating under a low-pressure synthesis process was developed—the 15,000-ton/year methanol project at Luzhou Carbon Black Plant in the Southern Sichuan Mining Area. This project set multiple “firsts” and received the Excellent Design Award of Sichuan Province. In 1995, China’s first low-pressure methanol production plant using natural gas as raw material, with an annual output capacity of 30,000 tons, was developed—the 30,000-ton/year methanol plant within the Dushanzi Ethylene Project in Xinjiang. In 1992, China’s then-largest coal-based methanol plant was independently developed—the 200,000-ton/year methanol plant within the combined heat and power project at Shanghai Coke Works. This project won the First Prize for Excellent Design in Shanghai and the **Gold Award for Excellent Design**, marking the inception of China’s independent large-scale low-pressure methanol technology. In 2000, the design of China’s first integrated gas-and-coal-based methanol plant with an annual output capacity of 50,000 tons was completed—the Puyang Methanol Plant in Henan Province ； In 2003, we independently developed China’s first ammonia-to-methanol conversion plant – the Lutianhua Lüyuan Methanol Plant, which has an annual production capacity of 400,000 tons of methanol. Despite having to import only a few key components from abroad, such as pure oxygen burners for two-stage furnaces, methanol synthesis towers, and centrifugal synthesis compressors, the entire plant utilized Chengda’s proprietary technologies. This enabled full localization of all technologies and most equipment used in the project. All performance indicators of the plant met world-class standards, earning it the First Prize for Outstanding Engineering Design in Sichuan Province. In 2006, we completed the design for China’s first natural gas-to-methanol plant with an annual output of 600,000 tons – the methanol plant operated by Qinghai Zhonghao Natural Gas Chemical Co., Ltd. This project was awarded the Silver Prize for High-Quality Projects by the **Engineering Construction Quality Award Appraisal Committee. In 2008, we independently developed China’s first methanol production plant utilizing acetylene off-gas – the 70,000-ton/year methanol plant owned by Meike Chemical. In 2010, we served as the EPC contractor for the world’s first coal-based methanol plant with an annual output of 1.8 million tons – the methanol plant within the Shenhua Baotou Coal-to-Olefins Project. Also in 2010, we completed the design for China’s first natural gas-to-methanol plant with an annual output of 800,000 tons – the methanol plant operated by CNOOC Chemical Limited. In 2012, we designed three natural gas-to-methanol plants in the Middle East, each with a daily production capacity of 5,000 metric tons. In 2016, we served as the EPC contractor for the methanol synthesis unit within Shenhua Xinjiang’s 680,000-ton/year coal-based new materials project (with a daily capacity of 5,500 metric tons); this project won the National High-Quality Engineering Award in the chemical industry. In 2017, our “Development of Large-Scale Domestic Radial Sulfur-Tolerant Shift Reactors” received the Third Prize for Technological Progress in China’s nitrogen fertilizer and methanol industries. In 2018, we served as the EPC contractor for the world’s first integrated coal, oil, and gas resource utilization project featuring a 1.8-million-ton/year methanol plant – the Yan’an Coal, Oil, and Gas Resource Comprehensive Utilization Project operated by Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum. In 2019, our “New Technologies for Utilizing Steam and Off-Gases in Large-Scale Coal-Based Methanol Production” earned the Third Prize for Technological Progress in Sichuan Province. In 2019, we successfully secured the EPC contract for Russia’s NFP methanol plant, which is designed to produce 5,400 metric tons of methanol per day. In 2020, we jointly developed the world’s first industrial-scale pilot plant for producing methanol via hydrogenation of carbon dioxide, with an annual output of 5,000 tons; this project passed on-site evaluations and technical assessments conducted by an expert panel organized by the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation. Also in 2020, we independently developed and served as the EPC contractor for China’s largest-ever methanol plant utilizing acetylene off-gas – the 200,000-ton/year methanol plant operated by Wanhua Chemical (Sichuan)