Davy/Dow technology for Saudi n-butanol project

London – Dammam 7 Petrochemical Ltd has selected LP OxoSM Selector 30 technology with Normax catalyst – from Davy Process Technology (DPT) and Dow subsidiary Union Carbide Corp. – for a new 80-kilotonnes-per-annum n-butanol facility in Al Jubail, Saudi Arabia.

The plant, which is scheduled to start up in 2008, will be part of a petrochemical complex with a target of manufacturing 200 ktpa of acrylic acid and its derivatives. LP Oxo is a low-pressure hydroformylation process that uses propylene and synthesis gas to produce n- and iso-butyraldehydes, which are then converted into n- and iso-butanol and other derivatives.

“We sought an oxo process that would not only provide the most cost-effective means of producing n-butanol, but one that was supported with demonstrated technical and operational expertise,” said Bader Abdulaziz Kanoo, chairman and MD of Dammam 7.

According to David Tomlinson, president of DPT: “The Dammam 7 plant will be the 32nd project to rely on LP Oxo Process Technology licensed from DPT and UCC. More than 60% of the global production of butyraldehydes comes from plants using LP Oxo Technology. Union Carbide and Davy Process Technology have been engaged in every step of the selection process, and we look forward to working with Damman 7 throughout the plant design process, startup and operation.”

The latest LP Oxo Selector 30SM technology with Normax catalyst provides the highest commercially-available isomer selectivity, claims Molly Peifang Zhang, vice president, Dow Technology Licensing. “Using our process, converters, like Dammam, are able to reduce output of the less desirable iso-butanol by as much as 67%. This, in turn, enables them to achieve the highest possible n-butanol production rates.”