Process for producing ethylene from ethanol dehydration

This route has certain economic value, and the price difference between the two is acceptable; the key issue is that the technology requirements and investment levels are high, so it’s not as straightforward as with higher-carbon alcohols

Are there any naturally abundant ones? I heard that Fengyuan Biochemical produces this product, using imported catalysts. Does anyone know anything about it? Is it SD technology? ? Currently, the reported ethanol dehydration catalysts include: clay, activated alumina, silica, phosphoric acid, sulfuric acid, thorium oxide, zirconium oxide, calcium phosphate, heteropoly acids, molecular sieves, zinc aluminate, Al2O3/SiO2, Al2O3/Cr2O3, Al2O3–MgO/SiO2, MgO–Al2O3, CdO, etc. Ethanol dehydration catalysts reported for industrial applications are mainly divided into two categories: active alumina catalysts and molecular sieve catalysts. Industrial plants for ethanol dehydration primarily use fixed-bed reactor technology. The largest such plants abroad were built in countries such as Brazil, India, and Indonesia before the 1980s; all of them had a capacity of 60 kt/a and utilized fixed-bed reactors. Fixed-bed reactors used for ethanol dehydration include isothermal tubular and adiabatic types. Most existing ethanol dehydration units in China use tubular reactors (such as the 3 kt/a unit at Sichuan Vinylon Plant). Tube reactors are complex to manufacture, costly, and have difficulties in catalyst loading and unloading; as a result, they tend to be replaced by other types of reactors. To produce ethylene from ethanol, with a yield of 90%, two tons of ethanol are required for every ton of ethylene produced! The cost of raw materials is very high! ! I remember that in the past, industrial ethanol was also produced through the ethylene hydration process. What is the economic efficiency of such a route? This post was last edited by uway on 2008-6-19 21:02]

Fengyuan Biochemical is an old facility in Suzhou County that previously adopted SD technology; Zhejiang Jiaxing also installed one such system. Jilin is currently installing a set of such devices, which also involve imported software packages. Both Global and Jihua Institute can handle design work. We have also done some comparisons, and it is still feasible at the current ethylene prices. It is usually combined with ethylene oxide.

The plant for producing ethanol from ethylene has stopped operating long ago.

Could you give a brief introduction to SD technology? ? ?

There is such a small device in Bengbu, Anhui! Someone has actually been here before! Generate ethylene from the ethanol produced as a by-product of alcohol production facilities! I don’t know if it can be operated now; the production volume is very low, at 20,000–30,000 tons per year. It’s quite simple – it just involves using catalysts! It is said that the factory originally planned to acquire local grain resources, but due to rising grain prices, it had to transport corn from the Northeast by train to produce alcohol, which is very costly! As a result, the subsequent ethylene production project was on hold for several years, until **a new management team took over and construction resumed!

The current setup for biochemical production is in operation; it uses SD technology, with catalysts supplied by Southern Chemical. (Presently, Southern Chemical Holdings holds 50% of SD Company’s shares.) A technology transfer agreement has already been signed, and another set of the latest technologies has been acquired from SD Company: using corn to produce ethanol, then dehydrating the ethanol to produce ethylene, and finally using ethylene to produce EOEG

At present, SD technology seems to be the best; several domestic companies such as Fengyuan and Jilin have adopted this technology. In the past two years, this field has developed rapidly in China, with many enterprises interested in installing such equipment. This technology is an adiabatic bed, and its energy consumption is still relatively high. In China, Sinopec’s Shanghai Research Institute of Petrochemical Technology is at the forefront in this area, offering isothermal fixed-bed reactors along with corresponding catalysts. Using this complete set of technologies, several plants have been built in China, including the 9 kt/a plant at Sinopec Sichuan Vinylon Plant, the 6 kt/a plant at Guangxi Vinylon Co., Ltd. (put into operation in 2007), and the 6 kt/a plant at Shanxi Sanwei Co., Ltd. (scheduled to be put into operation by the end of 2008).

After searching, the posts on the forum regarding the production of ethylene through ethanol dehydration are available at: http://bbs.hcbbs.com/viewthread.php?tid=213721&highlight=%D2%D2%B4%BC%2B%D2%D2%CF%A9 http://bbs.hcbbs.com/viewthread.php?tid=223689&highlight=%D2%D2%B4%BC%2B%D2%D2%CF%A9 http://bbs.hcbbs.com/viewthread.php?tid=98080&highlight=%D2%D2%B4%BC%2B%D2%D2%CF%A9 http://bbs.hcbbs.com/viewthread.php?tid=15870&highlight=%D2%D2%B4%BC%2B%D2%D2%CF%A9 http://bbs.hcbbs.com/viewthread.php?tid=227088&pid=1027798&page=1&extra=page%3D1#pid1027798 http://bbs.hcbbs.com/thread-224300-1-1.html. This post was last edited by lyn on 2008-7-10 at 18:15

Ethanol for ethylene oxide/ethylene glycol http://bbs.hcbbs.com/viewthread.php?tid=213302&highlight=%D2%D2%B4%BC http://bbs.hcbbs.com/viewthread.php?tid=182306&highlight=%D2%D2%B4%BC http://bbs.hcbbs.com/viewthread.php?tid=145628&highlight=%D2%D2%B4%BC http://bbs.hcbbs.com/thread-231166-1-2.html This post was last edited by lyn on 2008-7-9 14:13 ]