UOP LLC (Des Plaines, Ill.; www.uop.com), a Honeywell company, has announced that its technology has been selected to produce key ingredients for fuels and synthetic rubber in China. China’s Panjin Heyun New Material Co. will use Honeywell’s UOP C4 Oleflex process to produce isobutylene, a key ingredient for fuels and synthetic rubber. This is UOP’s third C4 Oleflex license in China this year. Panjin Heyun New Material Co. will also use Honeywell’s UOP Butamer process, which converts normal butane to isobutane thereby maximizing the feedstock utilization to the UOP Oleflex process.
The new unit, which is expected to start up in 2014, will process approximately 400,000 metric tons per year (m.t./yr) of isobutane feedstock at its facility in Liaoning Province, China. Honeywell’s UOP will provide the engineering design, technology licensing, catalysts, adsorbents, equipment, staff training and technical service for the project. The facility will house the largest isobutylene production unit in China.