Currently, the catalyst for manufacture of cumene,developed by the SINOPEC Shanghai Research Institute of Petrochemical Technology (SRIPT) and prepared by the SINOPEC Catalyst Company has been for the first time exported to Russia, with the 170 kt/a cumene unit filled with Chinese catalyst at the UFA petrochemical complex being put on stream successfully at the first attempt.

The loading of the reactors with the said catalyst was completed on September 19, 2020, and propylene was fed into the reactors on September 25 prior to delivering qualified cumene product on September 26, 2020. With the commisioning of olefin steam cracking unit under the Russian Oil Company ROSNEFT on October 10, 2020, the cumene production unit at the UFA Petrochemical Complex has been operating under full load on October 11, 2020.

Currently, the cumene production unit operates smoothly,with the cumene product quality reaching the Russian standard on technical indicators of petroleum products and the contract specified quality indicators, and the operating performance of Chinese catalyst has been recognized by the ROSNEFT administration as an endorsement of SINOPEC’s technical and service capabilities.

The R&D team of SRIPT in order to overcome the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has adopted a remote service mode by adhering to the combination of technology development with services, and has implemented the production and supply of catalyst on time. Before start-up of the cumene unit, the R&D team has provided the Russian techno-engineering personnel with a detailed operating manual and a checklist for catalyst loading and commissioning steps, which have guarenteed the successful start-up of process facilities at the first attempt.

The said catalyst has been extensively applied in many domestic process units to bring about good economic benefits and social benefits. The successful application of the said catalyst in the ROSNEFT facilities has opened a new chapter for SINOPEC catalyst to barge into overseas market.