Shandong Chamboard Petrochemicals based in China has selected the UOP C3 and C4 Oleflex methods of UOP, a Honeywell company, in order to manufacture main petrochemicals.
The facility will become the first in China to combine the two methods. Both the processes are utilized to manufacture propylene and isobutylene, respectively. Isobutylene is a main element in the production of synthetic rubber and fuels and propylene is used in the packaging and films manufacturing.
Pete Piotrowski, General Manager and Senior Vice President for Process Technology and Equipment at Honeywell's UOP stated that the manufacturers are expecting to combine the processes for maximizing the product yields and for decreasing the costs for production.
The new plants, which may commence in 2014, will generate 87,000 t of isobutylene and 133,000 t of propylene in a year at the company’s plant located in Shandong Province, China. UOP will offer the technology licensing, engineering design, adsorbents, catalysts, equipment, technical service and staff training for the project.
Catalytic dehydrogenation used in the C3 Oleflex and C4 Oleflex methods will convert propane to propylene and isobutane to isobutylene. The combined processes use mixed dehydrogenation in order to produce those two materials in a single facility. Oleflex technology enables low capital and operating expenses, high yield of propylene, and maximum operating flexibility.
Nine C3 Oleflex units have been commissioned by Honeywell's UOP for on-purpose production of propylene. The tenth unit has been scheduled to commence in Russia, this year. The company has reported this project to be the eighth C3 Oleflex project. Those projects situated in Abu Dhabi, China and North America may produce almost 5 mmt of propylene in the subsequent three years. Five C4 Oleflex units are now operating and producing almost 2 mmt of isobutylene in a year.
Source: http://www.uop.com/