Published August 1994
This supplementary report presents the industry status of propylene oxide (PO) and reviews recent developments in PO manufacturing technologies since PEP Report 2D, Ethylene Oxide/Propylene Oxide, issued in 1985. In this report, we focus on the technoeconomic evaluation of commercial and selected noncommercial PO processes.
Commercial PO processes evaluated are ARCO's and Texaco's PO/t-butyl alcohol processes, ARCO's and Shell's PO/styrene processes, and the chlorohydrin processes using lime and cell liquor. We also present the economics of selected noncommercial PO processes: four versions of the chlorohydrin process, an electrochemical process, two peracid processes, and a propylene glycol monoacetate pyrolysis process. In addition, we evaluate other noncommercial PO processes including the direct oxidation process, the hydrogen peroxide process, and the biochemical process from a qualitative perspective.
Overall, this PO report encompasses the latest technologies and process economics and provides a basis for insight into technical trends, environmental issues, and the selection of technologies
