Yangzi Petrochemical’s magic device: eats carbon dioxide and produces syngas

At Yangzi Petrochemical, there is a magical device that can "eat in" carbon dioxide and produce chemical products-synthesis gas (that is, carbon monoxide and hydrogen), which makes the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide instantaneously turn waste into treasure. This device is Yangzi Petrochemical's 250,000 tons/year carbon monoxide device.

 "At present, we can recycle 200,000 tons of carbon dioxide every year!" Cheng Shuhua, director of the synthesis gas workshop of Yangzi Petrochemical's aromatics plant, introduced to reporters. If calculated on the basis that each tree absorbs 20 kilograms of carbon dioxide per year, it is equivalent to planting about 10 million trees.

The company’s carbon monoxide plant "eats" carbon dioxide from two main sources: one is the by-product of the company’s ethylene glycol plant, which is about 5.8 tons per hour; the other is the plant’s self-produced, approximately 19.2 tons per hour. A total of about 25 tons/hour. According to the calculation of 8,000 hours of operation per year, 200,000 tons of carbon dioxide can be recovered every year.

In 2022, Yangzi Petrochemical will implement an overhaul of the carbon monoxide plant, which will effectively solve many design defects and operational problems of reformers, compressors, and cold boxes. The operating capacity of the plant will also increase from the current 80% to 100% full load. In operation, the carbon dioxide recovery capacity will be increased by another 20% by then, and a more solid step will be taken on the road to “carbon neutrality”.