Honeywell serves up renewable feedstock for petrochemical plastics in carbon-cutting boost
10 Feb 2022 --- Honeywell UOP is introducing new technology for producing petrochemical feedstock for plastics through a CO2-reduced process. The new solution produces renewable naphtha for petrochemical production using commercialized Ecofining technology.
Part of Honeywell’s Performance Materials and Technologies strategic business group, which also includes Honeywell Process Solutions, Honeywell UOP’s Ecofining process produces bio-naphtha with less CO2 than products using petroleum-based feedstocks.
“We are actively engaged with customers to drive new technology adoption, as renewable petrochemical feedstocks have grown in interest as consumers prefer more bio-based products,” comments Ben Owens, vice president and general manager at Honeywell Sustainable Technology Solutions.
“We see renewable naphtha produced from the UOP Ecofining process as a proven solution available today to help petrochemical producers reduce the carbon footprint of their products compared to using petroleum-based feeds.”
The new pathway can produce a high yield of naphtha from feedstocks like used cooking oil and animal fats.
UOP Ecofining produces a high yield of naphtha from feedstocks like used cooking oil.
Renewable feedstocks
Naphtha is a valuable petrochemical feedstock for producing plastics, specifically olefins, which are building blocks for other chemicals and aromatics used to produce polyester and other packaging materials.
Naphtha is traditionally derived from crude oil and natural gas condensates but can now be produced from renewable feedstocks. Renewable naphtha from feeds such as used cooking oil has a 50%-80% lower greenhouse gas footprint than petroleum feeds, depending on the feedstock, says Honeywell UOP.
Before introducing renewable naphtha solution, the UOP Ecofining technology has been used to produce predominantly Honeywell Green Diesel and Honeywell Green Jet fuel, with small amounts of bio-naphtha produced as a secondary product.
The same Ecofining technology can be adapted to produce high yields of renewable naphtha as its predominant product, reflecting the versatility of the Ecofining design and ability to produce a range of products based on market needs.
Decarbonization methods
For additional methods of decarbonization, the UOP Ecofining process for renewable naphtha can be combined with renewable hydrogen supply and CO2 capture and sequestration through the Honeywell H2 Solutions portfolio.
For example, for an Ecofining unit with renewable hydrogen and CO2 capture processing 10,000 barrels per day of oil feedstock such as used cooking oil, renewable naphtha can deliver more than 1 million metric tons of CO2 emission reductions annually compared to petroleum naphtha, the company highlights.
Honeywell UOP says renewable naphtha boasts a 50%-80% lower GHG footprint.
Honeywell UOP jointly developed the Ecofining process with Eni SpA. It converts non-edible vegetable oils and animal fats to Honeywell Green Diesel, offering improved performance over biodiesel and petroleum-based diesel.
Recycled plastics
Last year, Honeywell commercialized a “revolutionary recycling process” for producing recycled plastics from different plastic types. The new technology can reduce fossil fuel dependency by eliminating virgin plastics while enabling “hundreds of recycling cycles.”
The Fortune 100 company’s UpCycle Process Technology utilizes industry-leading molecular conversion, pyrolysis, and contaminants management technology to convert waste plastic back to Honeywell Recycled Polymer Feedstock, used to create new plastics.
Edited by Joshua Poole
