Dow’s UNIPOL™ technology selected for Qinghai Salt Lake Industry, Co.’s PP Project

24-Aug-11

The Qinghai Salt Lake Industry Co. has selected UNIPOL™ Polypropylene Process Technology from The Dow Chemical Company (Dow) for its new 160 KTA polypropylene (PP) unit. The unit will provide PP as part of Qinghai’s integrated magnesium metal project to produce homopolymers, random copolymers and impact copolymers. Installation at Qinghai Salt Lake Industry Co. is scheduled to start in 2012, with start-up expected in H2-2013. Tracy Cleckler, global commercial director, Dow Polypropylene Licensing and Catalysts business said, “The plastics market in China is expanding and this new license confirms the interest in using advanced polypropylene process and catalyst technology to produce differentiated resins for a variety of applications.” Qinghai Salt Lake Industry Co. license is eighth licensee of UNIPOL™ PP Technology overall in China. Qinghai Salt Lake Industry Co. is the largest salt lake resources development enterprise and potassium chloride base in China with a wide range of products including potassium carbonate, potassium nitrate and potassium metal. As part of the magnesium metal project, it will utilize coal as feedstock to produce ethylene and propylene through coal gasification, then use the ethylene and propylene as feedstock for the polypropylene unit. “With UNIPOL PP Process Technology we are able to meet growing market demand for polypropylene in China,” said the project director of polypropylene for Qinghai. “We have chosen UNIPOL because it’s one of the licensors with the most advanced propylene process technology available and offers the ability to produce the broadest spectrum of products in the world.” Resins produced by UNIPOLTM Polypropylene Technology from Dow account for 17% of global polypropylene output.