China Pingmei Shenma’s 100,000-ton annual capacity aminohexanenitrile production project (Phase 3) begins construction

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On April 9, the groundbreaking ceremony for the third phase of ASAN’s 100,000-ton aminohexanenitrile production project and the commissioning ceremony for ADIAN’s 200,000-ton adiponitrile (phase one) project were held in the Pingdingshan Nylon New Materials Development Zone. This marked a coordinated breakthrough in addressing the critical supply chain challenges related to the key raw materials used in the production of nylon 66 in China. China Pingmei Shennma Group became the only company in the world to possess independent core technologies for both adiponitrile and aminohexanenitrile, providing essential support for ensuring the autonomy and strategic security of China’s nylon industry. 　　Adiponitrile is the key raw material for producing high-performance nylon 66, and is regarded as the \"industrial chip\" in the chemical industry. For a long time, its production technology has been monopolized by international giants, severely restricting the independent development of new nylon materials in our country. 　　Guided by **strategic needs and the overall development of the industry, China Pingmei Shennma Group adheres to independent innovation and dual-track progress: on one hand, it has successfully developed a process for producing adiponitrile through the direct hydrocyanation of butadiene, thereby breaking foreign technological blockades; on the other hand, it has created a new production route that uses caprolactam as a raw material to produce aminocapronitrile through ammonolysis and dehydration, thus providing an effective alternative to adiponitrile. This approach enables the establishment of an industrial framework driven by both adiponitrile and aminocapronitrile, ensuring the security of the nylon industry’s supply chain at the technical level. 　　The Adian 200,000-ton/year adiponitrile (Phase I) project that has been put into operation now has a total investment of 1.874 billion yuan. The direct hydrocyanation of butadiene process used in this project represents the most efficient method for producing adiponitrile worldwide; it offers advantages such as low raw material costs, low energy consumption, high economic efficiency, and environmental sustainability. The production process results in almost zero waste emissions, which aligns well with the **“dual carbon” goals and the requirements for the development of green chemistry. 　　During the research and development process, the group’s R&D team overcame various key technical challenges, including the efficient use of adiponitrile catalysts, the production of high-purity hydrocyanic acid along with proper safety measures, as well as advanced distillation techniques for separation. A total of 17 patents were applied for, of which 8 were granted as invention patents and 1 as a utility model patent. This enabled full autonomy in the entire manufacturing process, resulting in a proprietary intellectual property framework as well as industrialization practices that can be replicated and scaled up. At present, the project is operating stably and efficiently; the purity of the product reaches 99.9%, and all relevant indicators are at an internationally advanced level, making it fully capable of replacing imported products.