Site

250,000-tonne/year ethanol plant. Credit: Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, via China Science Daily Press (Sep 18, 2024)

Production Capacities

The Tianye Huixiang facility operates the following major production units:

• Ultra-Pure Ethanol: 250,000 tons/year anhydrous ethanol production capacity, commissioned in September 2024​
• Ethylene from Ethanol Dehydration: 225,000 tons/year ultra-pure ethylene (99.96% purity) produced via ethanol dehydration, representing China's largest single-train ethanol-to-ethylene facility​
• High-Performance Resin Raw Materials: The facility is developing additional capacity for specialty chemical feedstocks targeting high-end polymer applications​

Process Technologies

Ethanol Production Technology: The facility employs the proprietary DMTE (Dimethyl Ether Carbonylation and Hydrogenation to Ethanol) technology, jointly developed by the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (DICP-CAS) and Yanchang Petroleum Group. The DMTE process converts coal-derived syngas through a multi-step pathway: syngas → methanol → dimethyl ether (DME) → methyl acetate (via carbonylation) → ethanol (via hydrogenation). This technology holds independent intellectual property rights and represents the fourth DMTE ethanol unit licensed by Yanchang Zhongke.​

Ethanol-to-Ethylene Technology: The 250,000 tons/year ethanol output feeds a downstream ethanol dehydration unit producing 225,000 tons/year of ultra-high-purity ethylene (99.96%) for high-end PVC resin production, replacing traditional calcium carbide-based acetylene routes with a greener alternative.​

Syngas Supply and Integration

The Tianye Huixiang operations are integrated with the adjacent Xinjiang Tianye Huihe New Materials Co., Ltd. (新疆天业汇合新材料有限公司) facilities, which operate the coal gasification infrastructure. The complex creates an integrated coal-to-chemicals value chain at the 147th Regiment industrial park, coupling coal gasification with multiple downstream chemical production pathways.