The Catalyst Review April 2024 - 5

Process News
Sustainable Aviation Fuels for Clean Skies: Exploring the Potential and Perspectives of
Strained Hydrocarbons
The focus on the power-to-liquid (PtL) pathway and the
recent developments in liquid strained cycloalkanes as highperformance
sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) have opened
new avenues for innovation in the composition of aviation
fuels. Through machine learning, potential cycloalkane
structures with superior energy content and other essential
properties are identified and optimized, which enhances
the efficiency and performance and reduces the costs of
SAF. Using strained multicyclic hydrocarbons as the base for
SAF brings several benefits over conventional aviation fuels.
These hydrocarbons offer higher energy density, resulting
in increased flight range and potentially reduced refuelling
stops, improving overall operational effectiveness. Moreover, the use of high-performance liquid cycloalkanes can significantly reduce
environmental impacts and carbon emissions, aligning with the aviation industry's focus on sustainability and decarbonization. Source:
Energy & Fuels, 3/10/2024.
Schematic of the PtL process with a closed/open CO2
Indorama Ammonia Plant in Nigeria is
First Deployment of Clariant's AI-powered
Platform for Syngas Plants
Indorama Eleme Fertilizer & Chemicals, a subsidiary of the
Indorama Corporation (Nigeria) becomes the first customer
to implement Clariant AG's new CLARITY Prime service at its
world-scale ammonia plant in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. CLARITY
Prime is an advanced digital service for syngas plants, an
upgrade of its cloud-based service portal CLARITY. Indorama
Eleme Fertilizer & Chemicals operates the world's largest
single-train ammonia plant in Nigeria and is the largest fertilizer
producer in Sub-Saharan Africa. Its expansive production
complex includes two ammonia plants with a capacity of 2,300
metric tons per day, and two urea plants producing 4,000
metric tons per day. Source: Chemical Engineering, 3/12/2024.
Zeopore is Making its Mark in
Green Applications through Zeolite
Modification
Besides making oil refining and petrochemicals more
performant and sustainable, Zeopore's unique zeolite
mesoporisation technology strongly contributes to the global
energy transition and emerging circular economy by using the
following approaches: 1) Lay bare the zeolite mesoporisation
landscape to define the optimum catalyst properties for
the target application; 2) Stepwise scale up the production
volume of the most suitable mesoporous zeolite; 3) Codevelop
the optimal supply chain through adequate
partnerships; and 3) Help deploy the process/catalyst offering
to the market. Source: Catalysis PTQ, 3/2024.
A Novel Process for the Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ethane to Produce Ethylene and
Acetic Acid
Linde Engineering has developed a commercial chemical
process for the oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane
(ODH-E). By means of a heterogeneous catalyst, ethane
and oxygen are selectively converted into ethylene and
acetic acid, which, after separation and purification, are
provided in polymer-grade and glacial quality, respectively.
The alternative oxidative route of the technology produces
less byproduct than the conventional state-of-the-art
ethane-steam cracking (E-SC) technology, allowing a
simplified cryogenic separation of ethylene product. In
addition, it generates steam for product separation due to
the exothermic reactions that take place in its multi-tubular
reactor. The specific energy consumption of the ODH-E
process is more than three times lower compared to E-SC of the same ethylene capacity. In turn, the proprietary technology reduces
emissions by more than 60%. When the CO2
Scheme of the ODH-E stand-alone commercial plant.
emissions directly captured from the process are utilized or stored, the proprietary process
becomes a zero Scope 1 solution. Moreover, as the process is delivered fully electrified, zero Scope 2 emissions can be achieved when
renewable electric power is applied.Source: Hydrocarbon Processing, 3/2024.
The Catalyst Review
April 2024
5
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The Catalyst Review April 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Catalyst Review April 2024