Paraxylene unit at Sinopec’s Shanghai unit starts up

16-Oct-09

Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co., Ltd. has successfully started up a new paraxylene complex using UOP process technology at the Sinopec facility in Shanghai. The aromatics project was completed in just 30 months from initial kick-off through commissioning, with UOP providing the technology license, basic engineering, equipment packages, and key products. "This successful start-up demonstrates what can be achieved for a large, world-scale facility through close collaboration and thorough planning," said Pete Piotrowski, senior vice president for UOP's Process Technology and Equipment business unit. "We are proud to continue our partnership with Sinopec and will continue to build on this almost 30-year relationship to help them meet their objectives." "Once engineering design was complete, it took just over 18 months to complete construction, prepare for start-up and bring the complex on stream," said Mr. Honggen Li, senior vice president of Sinopec Petrochemical. "This smooth and successful start-up is a perfect gift to the nation on the 60th anniversary of the People's Republic of China." The new aromatics complex produces 600,000 tpa of paraxylene using the UOP Parex ™ process. The new plant will also produce 280,000 tpa of benzene. In addition to the Parex unit, the complex also includes a UOP CCR Platforming™ unit to convert naphtha, an oil-derived feedstock, to aromatics and hydrogen and a UOP Isomar™ unit to convert other xylenes to para-xylene.