Catalysts needed by Shahid Tondgouyan Petrochemical Company in Khuzestan Province are being produced in collaboration with domestic knowledge-based firms, the head of STPC’s Research and Technology Office.
“The company has prioritized the indigenization of at least 12 catalysts, chemicals, heat transfer fluids, molecular sieves and textile oil for use in different units of the company during petrochemical processes,” Abdollah Sheikhnejad Moqaddam was also quoted as saying by the Oil Ministry’s news agency Shana.
A catalyst speeds up a chemical reaction but is not consumed by it. Most solid catalysts are metals or oxides, sulfides and halides of metallic elements and semi-metallic elements such as boron, aluminum and silicon.
A heat transfer fluid is a gas or liquid that takes part in heat transfer by serving as an intermediary in cooling on one side of a process, transporting and storing thermal energy, and heating on another side of a process.
Heat transfer fluids are used in countless applications and industrial processes requiring heating or cooling, typically in a closed circuit and in continuous cycles.
Molecular sieves are used for drying gases and liquids, and for separating molecules on the basis of their sizes and shapes. When two molecules are equally small and can enter the pores, separation is based on the polarity (charge separation) of the molecule; the more polar molecule being preferentially adsorbed.
Textile oil is used for high speed spindles of textile mills and other machine tools where there is a need for antistatic oil with scourable characteristics.
Speaking about the recent activities of STPC in the field of catalyst production, Moqaddam said, “For the first time in the history of Iran's petrochemical industry, the company is to indigenize the palladium catalyst with the help of domestic knowledge-based companies. The item has previously been monopolized by American, European and Japanese companies”.
The palladium catalyst is one of the precious metal catalysts used to increase the rate of chemical reaction without itself undergoing any change.
Applications of palladium catalyst include petrochemical, pharmaceutical, automotive, agrochemicals, specialty chemicals, flavors and fragrances. In the automotive industry, the palladium catalyst is used in exhaust emission catalytic converters and diesel particulate filters. It is used to accelerate chemical reactions in manufacturing industries.
Palladium catalysts are used in various catalytic processes, especially in hydrogenation processes. For instance, it is used in the production of hydrogen peroxide from alkylated anthraquinone. The catalyst is used in coupling reactions, wherein two hydrocarbon fragments are coupled with a metal catalyst.
Moqaddam said STPC also plans to localize six other catalysts, which are expected to be produced soon.
Largest PET Producer
Established in 1998, STPC is the largest producer of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) products and pure terephthalic acid in Iran.
The company set a record in the production of PET, producing 756,000 tons of the product in the first seven months of the current Iranian year (started March 21).
The historical record shows an increase of about 55,000 tons compared to the same period of last year.
The plant’s output stood at 1.125 million tons last year and plans are underway to surpass that amount this year and produce more than 1.29 million tons of products by the end of the current fiscal year (March 2023).
In the past two years, more than 10 new PET grades have passed lab tests and entered the market. PET film grade (BoPET films) and PET bottle grade for use in the packaging and food industries are among the recent products of the company.
Another product is a new grade of High Viscose PET, also called engineering polyester yarn. It is used to produce industrial yarns with high strength. The use of engineering polyester yarn includes tire yarn, tarpaulin tents, sturdy fabrics, fishing nets, shipload ropes and conveyors.
The production of crystal PET for use in ovens and microwave containers is also underway. High tenacity polyester will be added to the company’s production soon.
HTPET has the ability to undergo high tension stress and is used as chords in auto tire manufacturing.
The STPC is striving to gain technical knowhow to produce more grades of PET.
Rising Demand
Unlike refinery catalysts, those used in the petrochemical industry are very diverse and the volume of demand is high.
Iranian companies use about 23,000 tons of catalysts a year and as the annual consumption is growing, local companies attempt to meet the rising demand.
Due to the large variety of catalysts used in petrochemical complexes, a portion of which is imported, but US sanctions have made it difficult to purchase them from international markets, hence local firms should redouble efforts to indigenize as many catalysts as possible.
Of the 87 types of catalysts used in Iran’s petrochemical industry, 60 have been indigenized by different companies.
By the end of the year, eight more will be localized and the remaining 19 are to be developed by 2025 when Iran will no longer need to import catalysts.
