MOSCOW (MRC) -- Evonik Industries has formally commenced operations at a new hydrogen peroxide plant in Jilin, China, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.
The new production plant has an annual capacity of 230,000 metric tons. Evonik has invested over $136 million (EUR 100 million) in the site, thereby raising its current global capacity for hydrogen-peroxide production to more than 900,000 metric tons per annum.
Evonik will supply H2O2 from Jilin straight to the neighboring propylene oxide plant run by Jishen Chemical Industry Co., which has likewise been newly erected. A long-term supply agreement was signed for this purpose.
Jishen will use the hydrogen peroxide to manufacture propylene oxide on the basis of the HPPO process. Propylene oxide is used predominantly to make the polyurethane intermediates that are used in the manufacture of products such as upholstery for car seats and furniture or insulation material for the construction and refrigeration industry.
Evonik developed the HPPO process together with ThyssenKrupp Uhde. The new plant in Jilin is the second of its kind. Evonik, ThyssenKrupp Uhde, and a Korean chemicals company as the licensee were the first companies worldwide to use the HPPO process on an industrial scale back in 2008 in Ulsan (Korea).
To date, hydrogen peroxide has been used mainly as a bleaching agent by the textile and pulp industry. The HPPO process now allows this eco-friendly oxidant to also be employed in the direct chemical synthesis of propylene oxide. The benefits of the new method are that it requires much lower investment costs, has high production efficiency, and has excellent environmental compatibility.
As MRC wrote before, Evonik Industries was paving the way for a new technology whose applications include automotive finishes that are more scratch-resistant than ever before. The specialty chemicals company has developed an industrial-scale method for producing silane-modified binders for automotive finishes. The advantage of these silane-modified binders: silane groups increase crosslinking density, making it possible to create automotive finishes that are flexible yet harder, leading to improved scratch resistance.
Evonik, the creative industrial group from Germany, is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. Its activities focus on the key megatrends health, nutrition, resource efficiency and globalization. Evonik benefits specifically from its innovative prowess and integrated technology platforms. Evonik is active in over 100 countries around the world. In fiscal 2013 more than 33,500 employees generated sales of around EUR12.9 billion and an operating profit (adjusted EBITDA) of about EUR2.0 billion.
MRC