The chloroethylene mercury-free catalyzed synthesis project based on acetylene and dichloroethane, jointly conducted by Dezhou Shihua, the Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Zhongke Yigong (Xiamen) Chemical Technology Co and Shanghai Huayi Engineering, passed expert review on August 16. The project carried an annual capacity of 2,000 tons. Experts concluded that the project was the first of its kind in China, with technology on par with other similar cutting-edge technology abroad. The project will play an important role in reducing mercury discharge in China's PVC industry and help the country live up to the international mercury convention. It will have great prospects in future application.
The review meeting was held by the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation. Officials from the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the Ministry of Environmental Protection, as well as prestigious experts and scholars, were present at the meeting. They conducted field inspection and discussions, listened to reports, asked questions and eventually agreed that the project met all standards.
Li Yongwu, president of the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation, pointed out that China's PVC excels in performance and can be applied in various fields. The carbide-method PVC output accounted for 80 percent of the whole industry, consuming 60 percent of all mercury nationwide. Therefore, it's imperative to conduct technical renovations to solve mercury pollution in the industry. The mercury-free process will produce great economic and social benefits and is a revolutionary event in the PVC industry.
Yang Tiesheng, deputy director of the MIIT's energy conservation division, said that it's now imperative for the PVC industry to realize low-mercury or mercury-free production. To date, more than 100 countries, including China, have signed the Minamata Convention on Mercury, which asked for a 50-percent reduction in mercury use per unit PVC production by 2020 as compared with 2010. The new process can not only bring down mercury consumption but also reduce carbide use by 50 percent and improve product quality. It helps to realize green and clean production in the PVC industry. Yang said the MIIT will give full support to speed up the popularization of the process. Cai Ronghua, head of the NDRC's industrial division, was also in favor of process industrialization and hoped that the four partners behind the project can integrate resources and optimize the existing process for wider applications and lower costs.
Liu Xinjian, head of the Asian Development Bank's energy department, said that the bank will give support to the project as well.
The 2,000-ton mercury-free PVC synthesis unit has met all standards since it began operation in July 2013. The PVC comprehensive yield reached above 98 percent. Jiang Zhenghui, general manager of China Haohua Chemical Group and director of Dezhou Shihua, said that they would listen to expert opinions and improve process technology to achieve better environmental and social benefits. An industrialization demonstration unit will be established to help popularize the mercury-free production in China, according to Jiang.
After the review meeting, officials, experts and engineering technicians attended a symposium and had a thorough exchange on the project's unit design plan.