The tight propylene market contributed to the rising of new and novel lower-cost chemical processes for on-purpose propylene production technologies. Propane Dehydrogenation (PDH) technology is one of the promising processes that arises to fulfill this need. This report analyzes a PDH process similar to UOP Oleflex. It is presented a detailed technical and economic evaluation of a unit located in the US Gulf Coast. Also, the evaluation is conducted for a plant constructed in Brazil and China. Although China presented the lowest CAPEX, the USA presented the most attractive return of investment, due to the availability of low price propane, obtained from shale gas. The rising number of planned plants for both regions confirms such trends.
About the Technology Economics Program
It is a program that provides, by way of periodic reports, in-depth techno-economic assessments covering mature process technologies used by the chemical, polymer, refining and allied industries. Each report presents the following topics:
- process flow diagrams and description
- heat and material balances
- major equipment list
- equipment cost estimates
- bulk material and installation costs
- inside and outside battery limits capital costs
- process yields, raw material and utility consumptions
- fixed costs contributions
- process profitability by location