en.Wedoany.com Reported - Recently, the project "Application of High-Activity Deethylation-Type C₈ Aromatics Isomerization Catalyst," led by Sinopec Research Institute of Petroleum Processing Co., Ltd., passed the technical appraisal organized by Sinopec's Science, Technology, Digitalization and Intelligence Department. The appraisal committee concluded that the technology developed in this project has reached an overall domestically leading level.
C₈ aromatics isomerization is a key step in aromatics complexes to increase para-xylene production, and the activity, selectivity, and stability of the catalyst directly affect the unit's circulation load, product yield, and energy consumption. The SKI-320 ethylbenzene deethylation-type C₈ aromatics isomerization catalyst that passed the appraisal this time is the latest product in the SKI series of catalysts from the Research Institute of Petroleum Processing. It combines high xylene isomerization activity with favorable reaction selectivity, which can reduce the material circulation ratio and unit energy consumption while increasing the processing capacity of the aromatics complex.
Industrial operation data show that the SKI-320 catalyst achieves a xylene isomerization rate of 24.09%, an ethylbenzene conversion rate of 69.12%, and a xylene loss rate controlled at 1.19%. The selectivity of ethylbenzene conversion to benzene reaches 95.45%, and the resulting benzene fraction is of high purity, allowing qualified benzene products to be obtained through conventional distillation.
The catalyst has been in continuous stable operation for 62 months at the relevant units of Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Company. Since 2021, SKI-320 has cumulatively generated over 100 million RMB in additional profits by reducing circulation load, lowering energy consumption, increasing unit processing capacity, and optimizing product structure, demonstrating its long-term operational stability and industrial application effectiveness.
In 2002, the Research Institute of Petroleum Processing achieved the first industrial application of the first-generation SKI deethylation-type C₈ aromatics isomerization catalyst at the aromatics complex of Jilin Petrochemical's refinery, shifting China's reliance on such catalysts from imports to domestic supply. Over the following two decades, the R&D team continuously iterated on catalytic activity, selectivity, stability, and unit adaptability, successively launching second- and third-generation products, providing domestically produced catalyst support for the technical revamping of existing aromatics units and the construction of new projects in China.
To date, SKI series catalysts have been applied in 12 industrial units both domestically and internationally, including 4 newly built units and 8 units undergoing localization replacement, with a cumulative total of 20 applications. The total processing capacity of the covered units reaches 26.5 million tons per year, generating cumulative economic benefits of several billion RMB for users.
Going forward, the Research Institute of Petroleum Processing will continue to advance R&D in core reaction and separation unit technologies, improve supporting catalytic materials and complete process technologies, in response to the needs of aromatics complexes for lower energy consumption, expanded capacity, adaptability to diversified feedstocks, and reduced carbon emissions.
