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Abstract
The significant increase in natural/shale gas production in the US is causing major changes in the chemical and petrochemical markets. These changes include the increased supply of methanol and the decreased supply of propylene. As such, there are promising opportunities for methanol-to-propylene processes in the US. This paper provides a top-level techno-economic analysis of two pathways: methanol to olefins (MTO) and methanol to propylene (MTP). Base-case scenarios are simulated using ASPEN Plus to obtain the key mass and energy balances as well as design data. For each process, two scenarios are considered for the feedstock: buying methanol versus making it from natural gas. The return on investment (ROI) is calculated for both processes under broad ranges of the prices of natural gas, methanol, and products. In addition to the techno-economic analysis, the CO2 emissions are evaluated and compared.
Highlights
The recent and substantial discoveries of shale gas in the US are creating a high impact on the chemical industry
Olefins are among the various possible intermediates and final products that will be highly influenced by the downstream processing of shale gas
A top-level simulation and techno-economic analysis were carried out to examine the feasibility of two processes to produce propylene: the MTO and the MTP
Summary
The recent and substantial discoveries of shale gas in the US are creating a high impact on the chemical industry. While the escalating demand for olefins continue around the world (to make polymers, fibers, and other chemicals), the supply of olefins (especially propylene) is likely to be significantly reduced because of shale gas processing. As the majority of ethylene manufacturers in the US substitute naphtha with ethane (from shale gas) as the feedstock for ethylene production, propylene co-production from ethylene plants will be essentially eliminated. This switch is expected to create a substantial gap in propylene supply while the demand is expected to grow [10]. Based on the US market conditions, a sensitivity analysis is conducted for several scenarios
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