On August 15, the ultra-large PSA hydrogen plant under the 1.8 million tons/year ethylene glycol project of SHCCIG Yulin Chemical Co., Ltd.（Shaanxi Coal and Chemical Industry Group）completed its adsorbent loading and became ready to commence operations. The project, known as the “New Chemical Materials Demonstration Project for Coal Quality Utilization System,” is supported by SWRDICI’s (Southwest Research & Design Institute of the Chemical Industry) proprietary technology, complete design, and key equipment. The plant is the largest of its kind under construction, for coal-to-hydrogen PSA in the world.

It is a supporting project for coal conversion demonstration and possesses the largest coal processing capacity, the highest degree of industrial integration, the most complex technology integration, and an industrial chain that is closest to the terminal market. Its total capacity for raw gas processing is 570,000 Nm3/h and the total hydrogen production capacity is 480,000 Nm3/h.

In early August, the technical staff and the adsorbent loading personnel at the SWRDICI started the process of loading the adsorbent—a total volume of 1,676.82 tons. A novel dense-phase loading technology developed by SWRDICI was adopted for the loading process, and this raised the adsorbent loading density by 8% when compared with traditional loading method, greatly improving the technical performance of the PSA plant. Possessing distinct advantages, the technology has received a national patent and has been used in various PSA equipment of SWRDICI. SWRDICI overcame various difficulties during project implementation, including the COVID-19, and finally fulfilled all engineering tasks while maintaining high quality and efficiency as required by the client. This laid a solid foundation for the subsequent quality operation of the plant.