China launches test runs for world’s largest plant that can convert coal to ethanol
- Traditional ethanol production from corn or sugar cane competes with food supply, with China’s rising grain prices also posing a challenge
- Coal-based production line ‘vital’ for China’s food and energy security, co-developer Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics says in report on website
The world’s largest coal-based ethanol production plant has started test runs in southeastern China, state media reported.
The plant, which has an annual capacity of 600,000 tonnes, uses coal rather than crops as raw materials to produce ethanol – a petrol additive and valuable basic chemical. This is expected to ease the pressure on China’s food sources while reducing its dependence on fuel ethanol imports.
Ethanol is a clean, renewable energy source with a density similar to petrol. Anhydrous ethanol, with a concentration of over 99.5 per cent, can be blended with petrol to improve exhaust emissions and enhance fuel combustion performance.
Traditional ethanol production from corn or sugar cane competes with food supply, with China’s rising grain prices also posing a challenge. Using low-grade coal, a mineral China has in abundance, can save millions of tonnes of grain a year.
“The new production route is vital for China’s food security, energy security and the chemical industry supply chain,” the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) said in a report on its website.
The coal-based plant in Huaibei, Anhui province, uses advanced technology jointly developed by the DICP and the state-owned Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group, state news agency Xinhua reported on Friday.
