Sumitomo, Sekisui to start up a pilot plant in Chiba to produce ethylene from waste-based ethanol

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sumitomo Chemical and Sekisui Chemical are moving forward with a project to convert plastic waste into polyolefin, targeting to start up a pilot plant to produce ethylene as a first step, according to Kemicalinfo.

Sumitomo Chemical has established a cooperative relationship with Sekisui Chemical Co., Ltd. for the social implementation of the technology to manufacture polyolefin using waste as raw material.

Toyo Engineering Corporation has been awarded a contract for the said project to construct an Ethylene Pilot Plant.
Toyo has worked with Sumitomo Chemical since the basic design of the plant and currently carries out the detail engineering, procurement, and construction under the engineering, procurement, construction (EPC) lump-sum contract, aiming to start demonstration operation of the plant for a short period.

The pilot facility will be located at Sumitomo’s Chiba plant near Tokyo. The output capacity of the ethylene plant has not been disclosed. Sekisui will supply unspecified volumes of plastic waste-based ethanol to the pilot plant.

The commissioning is scheduled for some time during the April 2022-March 2023 fiscal year. The project partners plan to start trial production in 2022-23 and begin normal operations in 2025-26.

As MRC reported earlier, in December 2020, Sumitomo Chemical and Axens signed a license agreement of ethanol-to-ethylene technology Atol for Sumitomo Chemical’s waste-to-polyolefins project in Japan. In the project, to promote circular economy, Axens’ Atol technology will transform ethanol produced from waste into polymer-grade ethylene that will be polymerized in Sumitomo Chemical’s assets into polyolefin, a key product in the petrochemical industry.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

ExxonMobil to reduce air pollution at its refinery near Chicago

MOSCOW (MRC) -- ExxonMobil, US largest private petrochemical company, has reached an agreement with US and Illinois regulators to reduce air pollution at its refinery near Chicago in Joliet, Illinois, reported Reuters with reference to the US Department of Justice's statement.

The consent decree, which will require ExxonMobil to make operational changes to its sulfur recovery plant to reduce emissions, marks yet another sign that the Biden administration will be flexing its muscles in an effort to crack down on big polluters.

It comes less than a month after the Environmental Protection Agency revoked an expansion permit for the Limetree Bay oil refinery in the Virgin Islands, amid concerns about the facility’s impact on air pollution.

Under the settlement with ExxonMobil, the company has agreed to pay more than USD1.5 million in penalties, a little over USD1 million of which will go to the federal government. The remainder will be paid to Illinois. It will also undertake an estimated USD10 million of improvements to reduce air emissions, the Justice Department said.

As MRC wrote before, ExxonMobil is considering whether to close down its Slagen oil refinery in Norway, which has a capacity to process 120,000 barrels of crude per day, turning the site into an import terminal. The refinery at Slagentangen near Toensberg in south-east Norway was built in 1961 and process crude oil from the North Sea, exporting about 60% of the output, according to Exxon.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

Axens launches new SeLene brand for selective hydrogenation

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Axens announced the launch of SeLene, a newly created family brand dedicated to selective hydrogenation, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Selective hydrogenation is an essential purification step for the production of the most critical building blocks of the petrochemical industry. These blocks include ethylene, propylene, butadiene and aromatics. Selective hydrogenation is also applied in several refinery processing schemes, and plays an increasingly important role in the widely adopted, fully integrated, refinery and petrochemical operation.

Axens proposes a broad catalyst portfolio to deliver optimal performance, specifically tailored for the selective hydrogenation needs of the customers thanks to over 50 years of powerful innovation aimed at improving the active phase impregnation, combined with state-of-the-art alumina carriers.

Additionally, Axens highly integrated offer provides the convenience of a one-stop shop for its valued customers including Licensing, Basic Engineering, Internals & Dedicated Equipment, Adsorbents, Gradings, Unit Auditing, Consulting, Revamping and Digitalization revolving around the broad catalyst portfolio.

SeLene family combines over 20 industrially proven catalysts along with tailor-made services to provide dedicated solutions to meet customer needs. Moreover, SeLene also welcomes Axens latest catalysts with new performance features to help customers creating even more value along the whole olefins chain from the acetylene to the Pygas cut.

"The SeLene catalyst family is one of Axens’ first step to go hand in hand with customer in order to tackle the upcoming challenges related to the selective hydrogenation field. The SeLene catalyst family is focused on two main axes: innovative catalysts and dedicated services towards customer’s satisfaction." says Marie-Clotilde Gouvenot, Global Market Manager at Axens.

As MRC informed earlier, China's Zhejiang Petroleum & Chemical (ZPC) has selected Axens to supply catalysts for its Zhoushan ethylene project.

Also, The Baltic Chemical Complex (BHK), a subsidiary of JSC Rusgazdobycha, and the international company Axens signed an agreement on the supply of technology for the production of alpha-olefins used for the production of polyethylene. The technology will be applied within the framework of a project for the construction of a gas chemical complex as part of an ethane-containing gas processing complex near Ust-Luga in the Leningrad Region.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

CSPS starts up largest styrene monomer and propylene oxide plant in China

MOSCOW (MRC) -- CNOOC Oil & Petrochemicals Co., Ltd (CNOOC) and Shell Nanhai B.V. (Shell) have announced the start-up by their 50:50 joint venture, CNOOC and Shell Petrochemicals Company (CSPC), of new units to supply the Chinese market with essential petrochemicals, according to Hydrocarbonprocessing.

One new unit is the largest of its type in China, producing up to 630,000 tonnes per year of styrene monomer (SM)and 300,000 tonnes per year of propylene oxide (PO).

These chemicals are used in a wide range of applications, from household appliances to packaging and computers. The unit is also highly efficient. By using the Shell Group’s own SMPO process technology and making design improvements, it uses significantly less energy. It is the second unit of its kind built at the petrochemicals complex in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China, which is operated by CSPC.

Three further new units process PO into up to 600,000 tonnes per year of polyols, deploying the Shell Group’s advanced polyols technologies for the first time in China. They supply customers with a range of polyols, including performance products for specialised uses such as coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers, and foams used in bedding, furniture and cars.

The start-up of the new units completes a successful ‘phase two’ expansion of the CSPC complex and follows the commissioning of a second ethylene cracker in 2018. The complex now supplies customers with up to six million tonnes per year of diverse, high-quality intermediate and performance chemicals, including polyols, ethylene glycol, polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

Plans are already being made for a third phase of expansion at the site. CNOOC, Shell and the Huizhou Government signed a strategic cooperation agreement in May 2020. The third phase would involve building a third ethylene cracker and deploying the Shell Group’s advanced technology for linear alpha olefins for the first time in Asia.

Shell and CNOOC also announced a Memorandum of Understanding in 2020, to explore a commercial-scale polycarbonate (PC) production unit at the site, using the Shell Group’s diphenyl carbonate process technology.

As MRC reported earlier, in May 2018, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) and Shell Nanhai B.V. (Shell) announced the official start-up of the second ethylene cracker at their Nanhai petrochemicals complex in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China. The new ethylene cracker increases ethylene capacity at the complex by around 1.2 million tonnes per year, more than doubling the capacity of the complex, and benefits from a deep integration with adjacent CNOOC refineries.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

Flexible packaging supplier Polykar launched devices for industry calculators

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Montreal-based flexible packaging supplier Polykar Inc. has launched a new free app for iPhone and iPad (iOS) devices that centralizes all industry calculators that are used daily in one location, said Canplastics.

Called PolyApp, the app is developed for production planners, extrusion operators or sales reps working for a converter or distributor, and allows users to prepare orders and do dimensional calculations for the specific product (rolls or boxed) being designed, manufactured, quoted or purchased. Calculations are all done quickly, Polykar officials said – within a matter of seconds after entering specifications.

"As an innovative company, we saw the opportunity to provide a unique platform for those in the flexible packaging industry,” said Amir Karim, president and CEO of Polykar. “PolyApp offers the convenience of having all calculation tools packaged in one place. We hope this app will be appreciated and used by many in our industry."

The app, which Polykar says has been tested by industry experts, features seven easy-to-use tools including: liner dimension, weight/1000, film thickness, order planning, yield, roll OD & footage, and blow up ratio. The tools replace the constant use of spreadsheets and website calculators guaranteeing its users greater productivity and accuracy.

PolyApp can be downloaded free of charge from the App Store by searching for “PolyApp” or by clicking here. The app is available in English and will be available in French at a later date.

As it was written earlier, Polykar, a Montreal-based manufacturer of flexible packaging, is planning to build a new manufacturing facility in Edmonton, Alta. The company – which makes polyethylene film, certified compostable bags, garbage bags as well as food and industrial grade liners.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC