Academician speaks out: Modern coal chemical industry is at a point of breakthrough! What do you think? ? ?

1.6 billion yuan allocated for pilot projects under the clean energy strategy. China Energy News: It is understood that the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is leading the efforts to establish an Institute for Clean Energy Innovation, and has recently launched the Class A strategic pilot science and technology project titled “Key Technologies and Demonstrations for Transformative Clean Energy”. What is the significance of these measures for the energy sector? Liu Zhongmin: The Innovation Research Institute is aimed at exploring more flexible institutional mechanisms to foster innovation and the generation of significant achievements. Pilot projects serve as important platforms and tools; without such strategic projects as a foundation, it would be very difficult to explore new institutional mechanisms, or even impossible to do so. Launched officially in April this year, the Clean Energy Pilot Project has a total budget of 1.6 billion yuan and adopts a new mechanism of \"flexible entry and exit, as well as rolling development.\" Its technical approach focuses not only on the complementary integration of various energy sources at the current stage but also takes into account the technological needs associated with China’s transition from high-carbon to low-carbon and ultimately carbon-free energy systems, with the aim of providing technical support for the establishment of a new clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient energy system in China. China Energy News: Is the preparation work for the Clean Energy Innovation Institute progressing smoothly? Liu Zhongmin: The Clean Energy Innovation Institute is led by the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, with the collaboration of 12 research institutes in the field of energy under the Chinese Academy of Sciences to carry out its operations. It represents a new model that involves exploring first the use of laboratory-based mechanisms to accomplish significant tasks; research is conducted from the perspective of resources and development trends, even when interests are not entirely aligned. The institute is scheduled to be established by 2019 to operate effectively. One example is the integrated development between the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics and the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology; despite the challenges, they quickly established unified rules and regulations as well as a joint decision-making mechanism. One year after this integration, the enterprises in the regions served by these two institutes are undergoing transformation and upgrading. Currently, research institutions and universities across the country are facing a common problem of difficulty in cooperating with one another; without changes in organizational structures, it is hard to pool efforts to tackle major challenges. The reason for the current reforms is also to carry out explorations and efforts in terms of institutional mechanisms in line with **** requirements.

Modern coal chemical industry enters a period of breakthroughs. China Energy News: You led your team to carry out the world’s first industrial-scale test of the methanol-to-olefins technology, as well as its first industrial implementation. Later, you took the lead in developing a new generation of this technology – in which projects has it been applied? Liu Zhongmin: Methanol-to-olefins is an original technology in China that possesses independent intellectual property rights; it is also one of the few modern coal chemical technologies in the country that has been truly successful and validated through large-scale industrial application. Currently, 24 sets of industrial facilities have been licensed nationwide, capable of producing 14 million tons of olefins. Currently, 12 sets have been put into operation, generating an output value of around 70 billion yuan per year, and further promotion is ongoing. China Energy News: In the period from the 11th Five-Year Plan to the 13th Five-Year Plan, in what aspects was the progress of the coal chemical industry evident? Liu Zhongmin: The coal chemical industry saw initial demonstrations during the 11th Five-Year Plan period, with the scale of these demonstrations expanded during the 12th Five-Year Plan period; a new round of technological development is set to take place during the 13th Five-Year Plan period. At present, a single product from coal chemical processing can generate output worth hundreds of billions of yuan; coal-to-oil production can reach several hundred billion yuan, coal-to-olefins production around one to two hundred billion yuan, coal-to-ethylene glycol production one hundred billion yuan, and coal-to-ethanol production two to three hundred billion yuan – in total, this amounts to trillions of yuan. The modern coal chemical industry holds great development potential, and China boasts \"partial leadership with significant room for improvement\" in terms of technology. The China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation has just released a set of data on the applications of coal chemistry: the production capacity for coal-to-oil is 9.6 million tons, while that for coal-to-olefins is nearly 10 million tons, accounting for one-third of the country’s total capacity. The production capacity for coal-to-ethylene glycol is 6.8 million tons. There are two approaches to producing coal-to-oil – direct hydrogenation liquefaction and indirect liquefaction via syngas – and both methods are now operating at high capacity. All of these technologies were developed in China from scratch, with industrial demonstrations and large-scale production following. I believe that the development of coal chemical industry has reached a pivotal stage recently. For example, Academician Bao Xin and his team are researching the coupled reaction of carbon monoxide and methanol to produce aromatics directly, which is a research topic regarded as the \"Holy Grail\" in the field of chemistry. China Energy News: In your opinion, what is the biggest challenge facing China’s coal chemical industry? Liu Zhongmin: The biggest challenge in coal chemical industry is its clean utilization. A higher hydrogen content in the raw materials means fewer carbon dioxide emissions. Among fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas, natural gas has the highest hydrogen content, while coal has the lowest. Faced with environmental protection pressures at home and having signed the Paris Agreement, how to reduce carbon dioxide emissions while maintaining a balance between development, emission reduction, and the environment requires consideration within the broader international context. Of course, we can’t discuss coal chemical industry in isolation from its broader context. At the strategic level, **investments were made in the field of coal chemical industry long ago. Modern coal chemical processes need to improve their efficiency further, while it is also necessary to vigorously develop clean and renewable energy sources. Through the platforms of energy storage and hydrogen, it is possible to integrate fossil fuels with renewable and clean energy sources.

Top-level planning urgently needs to overcome short-term interests. China Energy News: Some believe that the development of China’s coal chemical industry is a case of \"flowers blooming within the walls, yet their fragrance reaching outside.\" What’s your opinion on this? Liu Zhongmin: There are two major developments on the international stage that deserve special attention. The first is the development of shale gas in the United States, which has triggered a new energy revolution there, shifting the country from being a net importer of natural gas to a net exporter. Firstly, the development of coal chemical industry in our country is an important factor that can bring about transformative changes in the energy supply and demand balance in international trade. Therefore, the international community pays close attention to the development of China’s coal chemical industry. The development of coal chemical industry has always proceeded amid controversy; the advancement of technology ultimately has to be judged by economic considerations and must stand up to market tests. By focusing on national conditions and doing things with distinct characteristics, it is surely possible to meet **needs and solve major problems. China Energy News: China’s scientific and technological development is currently in an important phase of improving its systemic capabilities. Does the country have advantages in the field of clean energy? Liu Zhongmin: Due to its resource endowments, China has few advantages in terms of resources in the energy sector; overall, it is even dependent on other countries. The biggest issue at present is energy security. The cooperation and competition between China and the United States are ongoing, and this is a long-term problem; the top priority is to expand and ensure diverse sources of oil and natural gas imports. In the long term, strategic arrangements need to be made. China Energy News: What specific suggestions do you have regarding this situation? Liu Zhongmin: In general, it is necessary to overcome short-term interests and strengthen top-level planning. First is policy guidance. Taking coal-to-oil as an example, as a **strategic reserve technology, it is supposed to play its role at critical moments; yet it has not received any policy subsidies or tax exemptions in the course of its development. Companies that invest in coal-to-oil production currently allocate enormous amounts of capital, and they can only offset these expenses through other business activities; this hinders the entry of private capital to drive accelerated innovation in the industry. Therefore, I believe it is necessary to have **policies to guide social capital into the real economy**. Secondly, it is necessary to strengthen strategic research; there are many influential energy think tanks internationally, but such institutions are still lacking in our country. International cooperation is needed to innovate scientific methods, including the use of big data for retrieving and accumulating basic data for modeling, so that **think tanks can truly fulfill their role. Generally speaking, with a clear top-level design in place, the concepts and approaches to implementing **major projects differ, and so do the outcomes.