Group consolidates technological leadership of Epicerol™ process
Solvay announces today that the first industrial unit implementing Solvay’s novel process to produce Epichlorohydrin, Epicerol™, was successfully launched in Tavaux (France). The plant is fed with glycerine derived from rapeseed oil and has an initial nameplate capacity of 10 metric kilotons per year, easily expandable in response to market demand.
This first industrial implementation of Epicerol™ reaffirms Solvay’s technological leadership with a process based on the transformation of glycerine, which is a by-product of the biodiesel industry, and paves the way for future developments. Solvay is planning a further investment in a 100 kt/year unit in Thailand, in response to rapidly growing demand for epichlorohydrin, in particular in Asia. In this country, Solvay will take advantage of its integrated site of Map Ta Phut. This new Epicerol™ production unit will startup mid 2009.
Epicerol™ was developed by Solvay’s R&D teams and is covered currently by 22 pending patent applications. The process was one of the eight innovations distinguished during the Solvay Innovation Trophy (SIT) ceremony last December in Brussels.
“The speed at which we managed to lift Epicerol™ from the initial concept to a full-fledged industrial implementation is a shining illustration of Solvay’s capacity to innovate” commented Filipe Constant, managing director of the strategic business unit Electrochemistry and Derived Specialties, Solvay. “We believe that Epicerol™ will make a substantial contribution to the Group’s sustainable and profitable growth strategy” added Constant.
SOLVAY is an international chemical and pharmaceutical Group with headquarters in Brussels. It employs some 29,000 people in 50 countries. In 2006, its consolidated sales amounted to EUR 9.4 billion, generated by its three sectors of activity: Chemicals, Plastics and Pharmaceuticals. Solvay (Euronext : SOLB.BE - Bloomberg: SOLB.BB - Reuters: SOLBt.BR) is listed on the Euronext stock exchange in Brussels. Details are available at www.solvay.com
Notes to the Editors :
Epichlorohydrin is one of the most useful members of the epoxide family of compounds, its major use being the manufacture of epoxy resins, which have a large number of applications in the car, housing, boating and leisure industries. Other applications include the reinforcement of paper (used for instance in the food industry to manufacture tea bags) and water purification. Epichlorohydrin is traditionally derived indirectly by reacting propylene with chlorine.
The Epicerol™ process developed by Solvay allows the direct synthesis of dichloropropanol, an intermediate product, from glycerine and hydrochloric acid. A second step – dehydrochlorination – generates the final product, epichlorohydrin. The entire process is marked by a lower specific consumption of chlorine and water, consequently reducing chlorinated effluents. Solvay developed the glycerine-based process described in earlier scientific literature and made its industrialization possible thanks to the creation of an entirely new class of catalysts, among other innovations.
Glycerine is the main by-product of biodiesel production, with the generation of approximately 100 kg of glycerine for every 1000 kg of biodiesel.
