On September 2―7, 2018, the service team composed of technical personnel from the SINOPEC Shanghai Research Institute of Petrochemical Technology (SRIPT) and the SINOPEC Nanjing Catalyst Branch Company had provided technical service to loading of ethylbenzene catalyst EBC-1 and start-up of the guard reactor in a 500 kt/a benzene/ethylene alkylation plant of the Tianjin Dagu Chemical Co., Ltd.

The guard reactor in the 500 kt/a benzene/ethylene alkylation plant, which previously had been adopting the catalyst provided by the ExxonMobil Corporation, upon being switched over to ethylbenzene catalyst EBC-1 has evidenced a satisfactory activity and stability of the said catalyst. Since the ethylene conversion reaches 100% and the ethylbenzene selectivity is greater than 99.0%, the management of Tianjin Dagu Chemical Company has been satisfied with the performance of the catalyst.

Currently the EBC-1 catalyst for manufacture of ethylbenzene has been successfully applied in the guard reactor at the 320-kt/a ethylbenzene unit of the Xinjiang Dushanzi Petrochemical Company and in the guard reactor at the 840 kt/a ethylbenzene unit of the Taiwan Chemical Company under the Formosa Plastics Group. The outcome of catalyst application has indicated that the overall performance of the EBC-1 catalyst is a stroke above the similar catalyst provided by ExxonMobil. In consequence, the Formosa Plastics Group has decided to use the EBC-1 catalyst in main reactors of the 840 kt/a ethylbenzene unit starting April 2019.