【Ten Years of Rapid Development in Chemical Equipment】5,000 tons/year pilot plant for methanol production via carbon dioxide hydrogenation from 1985 to 2023
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This post was last edited by Desert Fish on January 27, 2023, at 15:47. There has been significant development in chemical processing equipment over the past decade; may China continue to thrive and prosper. Wishing everyone a happy New Year, and may their families be safe and healthy. I hope this contribution will inspire further discussion from others – with more people participating, the forum will become even more lively. Haichuan is better with you all; feel free to participate more in discussions on this forum. ********************************************** On January 16, 2023, the 5,000-ton/year pilot plant for producing methanol via carbon dioxide hydrogenation, developed and built jointly by Southwest Chemical Research and Design Institute Co., Ltd. (referred to as “Southwest Institute”) and Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd. (referred to as “Luxi Group”), began operating successfully, producing qualified crude methanol products after the introduction of raw material gas. The construction of this pilot plant took four months; it started up successfully on the first attempt and has been operating continuously since then. The 5,000 tons/year pilot plant for producing methanol via carbon dioxide hydrogenation utilizes specialized catalysts developed by the Southwest Research Institute for this process, as well as a patented low-energy-consuming process for synthesizing methanol from carbon dioxide. The conversion rate of carbon dioxide and the selectivity for methanol achieve advanced levels compared to similar technologies, and the use of heat coupling techniques enables a significant reduction in the energy consumption per unit of methanol produced. Building on the achievements of this pilot-scale technology, the Southwest Research Institute will develop a 100,000-ton-per-year process package for converting carbon dioxide into methanol via hydrogenation, thereby creating a complete set of technologies for this process with independent intellectual property rights. This project is the first to reach pilot-scale production since Sinochem officially established GREAT10 in September 2022. The hydrogenation of carbon dioxide to produce methanol has a significant carbon-reduction effect; it helps alleviate the pressure related to carbon emission reduction faced by Luxi Group in its development, strengthens the low-carbon industrial chain that utilizes carbon dioxide produced as a by-product of coal chemical processing to manufacture methanol, olefins, new materials, and fine chemicals, enhances the integration level of Luxi’s industrial chain, and contributes to Sinochem’s achievement of its \"dual carbon\" emission reduction goals.
Project Name: Pilot Project for the Production of Methanol via Carbon Dioxide Hydrogenation at 5,000 t/a Capacity, Phase I Coal Chemicals Branch of Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd.
Project Owner: Phase I Coal Chemicals Branch of Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd.
Construction Location: The existing unused land of Phase I Coal Chemicals Branch of Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd. within the Liaocheng Chemical Industry Park; geographic coordinates: N36.353, E116.149. Construction contents and investment: The enterprise will invest 15.15 million yuan to build a pilot-scale plant for converting carbon dioxide into methanol, and utilize the existing methanol distillation facility for carrying out methanol production on a pilot scale. The pilot period for this project is one year. Existing projects and their environmental protection status: The Coal Chemicals Division 1 currently has one 25-ton ammonia-alcohol co-production unit (under demolition), one plant with an annual production capacity of 180,000 tons of synthetic ammonia and 300,000 tons of urea (currently shut down), two methanol washing units (operating normally), and one coal-to-hydrogen plant (operating normally). The Southwest Institute serves as the backing entity for China Sinochem Low-Carbon Chemical Engineering Research Center, and is dedicated to the research, development, and industrial application of low-carbon technologies such as carbon capture, efficient conversion and utilization of carbon resources, hydrogen/renewable energy, and carbon reduction in chemical processes. The hydrogenation of carbon dioxide to methanol has a significant carbon-reduction effect and represents a key step in converting carbon dioxide into high-value chemicals; combined with hydrogen production from renewable energy sources and carbon dioxide capture, this process enables the sustainable recycling and conversion of carbon dioxide. The application of this technology will provide strong support for carbon emission reduction in industries such as coal chemistry, power generation, metallurgy, and construction, and it is of great significance for **achieving the ‘dual carbon’ goals**.
Project Owner: Phase I Coal Chemicals Branch of Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd.
Construction Location: The existing unused land of Phase I Coal Chemicals Branch of Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd. within the Liaocheng Chemical Industry Park; geographic coordinates: N36.353, E116.149. Construction contents and investment: The enterprise will invest 15.15 million yuan to build a pilot-scale plant for converting carbon dioxide into methanol, and utilize the existing methanol distillation facility for carrying out methanol production on a pilot scale. The pilot period for this project is one year. Existing projects and their environmental protection status: The Coal Chemicals Division 1 currently has one 25-ton ammonia-alcohol co-production unit (under demolition), one plant with an annual production capacity of 180,000 tons of synthetic ammonia and 300,000 tons of urea (currently shut down), two methanol washing units (operating normally), and one coal-to-hydrogen plant (operating normally). The Southwest Institute serves as the backing entity for China Sinochem Low-Carbon Chemical Engineering Research Center, and is dedicated to the research, development, and industrial application of low-carbon technologies such as carbon capture, efficient conversion and utilization of carbon resources, hydrogen/renewable energy, and carbon reduction in chemical processes. The hydrogenation of carbon dioxide to methanol has a significant carbon-reduction effect and represents a key step in converting carbon dioxide into high-value chemicals; combined with hydrogen production from renewable energy sources and carbon dioxide capture, this process enables the sustainable recycling and conversion of carbon dioxide. The application of this technology will provide strong support for carbon emission reduction in industries such as coal chemistry, power generation, metallurgy, and construction, and it is of great significance for **achieving the ‘dual carbon’ goals**.
On July 9, 2022, Luxi Chemical disclosed the environmental impact assessment report for the pilot project of producing methanol via carbon dioxide hydrogenation at a capacity of 5,000 tons per year, carried out by the Coal Chemicals Division 1 of Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd. On September 27, 2022, the Liaocheng High-Tech Industrial Development Zone issued a announcement stating that the environmental impact assessment document for the pilot project of producing methanol via the hydrogenation of carbon dioxide at a capacity of 5,000 tons per year by the Coal Chemicals Division 1 of Luxi Chemical Group Co., Ltd. had been approved.
I hope to see an industrial demonstration plant for the production of methanol via carbon dioxide hydrogenation on a scale of 100,000 tons as soon as possible.
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