Unit capacity can be increased to 120% of design capacity, and steam consumption is significantly reduced
Can bring more than 15 million US dollars of economic benefits to Shandong Yuhuang Chemical Group every year
New-generation StyroMax® UL3 catalyst with higher activity and selectivity, capable of producing styrene monomers at ultra-low water-oil ratios
Clariant, a specialty chemical manufacturer, today announced that StyroMax® UL3 ethylbenzene dehydrogenation catalyst has been successful in the styrene monomer production unit of Shandong Yuhuang Chemical Group.
The production facility is located in Heze, Shandong Province. Since the use of this catalyst in March 2018, it has achieved very satisfactory results, and both production capacity and production efficiency have been improved.
Zhang Yandong, general manager of Shandong Heze Yuhuang Chemical Co., Ltd. said: "In the past ten months, this catalyst has achieved significant results. The capacity of styrene monomer has increased to 120% of the designed capacity within three months. We achieved design capacity faster than with other catalysts. "
The average annual production capacity of Shandong Yuhuang Styrene Monomer Production Unit increased by 50,000 tons, equivalent to an output value of 13 million US dollars.
In addition, this catalyst achieves this excellent result under the condition that the water-to-oil weight ratio is stable at an ultra-low value of 1.1, so it can save an additional $ 2.5 million in steam energy consumption.
StyroMax UL3 is expected to continue to play a strong role and is expected to bring more than 15 million US dollars in economic benefits to Shandong Yuhuang Group every year.
Founded in 1986, Shandong Yuhuang Chemical Group has grown from a small private factory to a large-scale private joint-stock multinational enterprise group with 5 production bases, 15 subsidiaries, and more than 5,000 employees.
The company's main products include styrene, gasoline, diesel, methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), dimethyl ether (DME), isobutylene, polystyrene, polypropylene, and other products. As a fast-growing chemical and plastics manufacturer, Shandong Yuhuang is constantly looking for innovative solutions to reduce costs and increase competitiveness.
Clariant StyroMax UL3 was launched in 2016 to reduce process costs for manufacturers that produce styrene at ultra-low water-to-oil ratios.
Although previous catalysts can provide higher activity or selectivity under these conditions, StyroMax UL3 is the first catalyst to provide both of these properties. Its activity increases the formation rate of styrene monomer, while selectivity minimizes the formation of by-products. These by-products include toluene and benzene, which are generally lower in economic value than styrene monomer.
The catalyst is suitable for ultra-low water-to-oil ratio operation (weight ratio is about 1.0), so it can reduce steam consumption, which makes styrene production more sustainable and more economical.
In addition, Clariant Catalysts will provide customers with professional technical support services, including the start-up service of the production unit for the first time, and follow-up assistance to maintain the catalyst's optimal operating performance, and provide on-site troubleshooting if necessary.
Stefan Heuser, senior vice president and general manager of Clariant's Catalysts business unit, said: "We are honored to cooperate with the Chinese industry benchmark Shandong Yuhuang Group on the StyroMax UL3 catalyst product. Expectations are good, and we are glad to see that Clariant's technical service support has become another key factor in choosing customers to work with us. "