【Ten Years of Great Progress in Chemical Technology】166–2016: Sinopec Deploys China’s First Terminal Oil and Gas Recovery System

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On May 27, Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical installed oil and gas recovery systems at two berths of its chemical terminal to prevent the release of oil and gas into the atmosphere during loading and unloading. Currently, this recovery device has passed the evaluation by the Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau and has been put into operation, becoming the first oil and gas recovery device of its kind to be deployed at a port in China. Images: Since fuels such as gasoline are volatile, they can easily spread into the air during storage, transportation, and loading/unloading processes. This not only leads to waste of resources but also poses safety risks and causes air pollution. At present, it is a common practice in China to install oil and gas recovery systems in gas stations, and such systems are being widely adopted across the country; however, they are rarely seen at ports where refined oil products are loaded and unloaded by water. The oil and gas recovery system installed at the port by Sinopec this time makes use of technology owned by Sinopec itself. Through close cooperation between engineering technicians and design firms, and via ship-to-land connection facilities, oil and gas from ship cabins is recovered and sent to the recovery system. A treatment process that involves first condensing and then adsorbing is employed to capture the uncontrolled emissions of oil and gas that occur during loading, thereby reducing the emissions of non-methane hydrocarbons. It is understood that in many developed countries such as those in Europe and the United States, it is quite common for chemical ports to be equipped with oil and gas recovery systems, while in China this is still in its infancy; the oil and gas recovery systems that some ports have attempted to install are still in the experimental stage. The recycling system installed by Sinopec Shanghai has passed the evaluation by the Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau, indicating that Sinopec is at the forefront of oil and gas recycling at ports in China.