Midland, Michigan -- Sinopec-SABIC (Tianjin) Petrochemical Co. Ltd (SSTPC), a joint venture between Sinopec and SABIC, relies on Dow Chemical Co.'s Meteor (most effective technology for ethylene oxide reaction) process to make ethylene oxide (EO) and ethylene glycol (EG) at its 40/360 (EO/EG) kilotonnes-per-annum Sinopec Tianjin complex.
Production at Tianjin, which Dow said has the largest single EO reactor in China, began in early February 2010. SSTPC is the first facility in China to use the Meteor process, Dow commented, in a 4 May statement.
According to Joe Bromley, global business director for Dow EO/EG, "The large scale of the Tianjin project made it a demanding and complex undertaking." Bromley described the unit as "one of the most technologically advanced EO/EG facilities in China."
He attributed the project's success to good cooperation between Dow and Sinopec, with both teams working hard, even in "the coldest winter on record in China in 60 years."
The simple Meteor EO/EG process, commercialised in 1994, uses a single reactor and a unique EO catalyst, which combines high activity with the highest selectivity in the industry. The route "offers Tianjin the most efficient route to EO/EG production," according to Dow.
Dow said that using Meteor allows manufacturers to produce EO and EG with fewer steps, less equipment and a smaller plot size than competitive technologies. The streamlined process also requires less capital and gives efficient use of raw materials and a substantial reduction in plant emissions, according to Dow.
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