Liang Tao, China Petroleum and Petrochemical Research Institute

Research has entered a critical stage of industrialization

At present, China's BIR-related academic research institutions mainly include Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Beijing University of Chemical Technology and Dalian University of Technology. With the goal of industrialization, the Lanzhou Research Center of Chemical Industry of China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Research Institute and the Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry have researched jointly, built a pilot plant for BIR, and achieved a breakthrough in the core technology of the preparation of high-activity and high-stability rare earth catalysts and rare earth BIR structure control.

Urgently need to breakthrough from pilot test to industrialization

There is no BIR industrialized device at home and abroad but only the development of pilot technology presently. The Lanzhou Research Center of Chemical Industry of China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Research Institute has completed small-scale research, pilot scale-up research and product application after 8 years research. At present, 30 000 tons/year BIR has completed the preparation of integrated rubber process package. The complete set of technology is mainly composed of catalyst and antioxidant preparation, continuous polymerization, coagulation, solvent and butadiene, isoprene recovery, rubber pellet extrusion dehydration, expansion drying and packaging post-processing and other process units. Currently, BIR urgently needs to complete the breakthrough from pilot test to industrialization, build BIR industrial equipment with completely independent intellectual property rights, and realize the high-value utilization of butadiene resources and isoprene resources.

Large-scale application of green tires still need time

Making green tires requires green synthetic rubber materials and BIR is such a synthetic rubber material. The development of BIR's industrialization is inseparable from the cooperation between rubber companies and tire companies. BIR manufacturers continuously develop new brands of BIR, establish processing and application databases, and promote BIR's processing and application technology in tire companies based on their requirements. At present stage, tire companies still lack BIR application formula and processing technology, and need to continuously accumulate application experience after industrialization to realize large-scale application.

The low-cost period of butadiene and isoprene brings development opportunities

At present, with the construction and commissioning of a number of large-scale refining and chemical integration projects, the construction and commissioning of Zhejiang Petrochemical, Shenghong Petrochemical, Shandong Yulong Island Refining and Chemical Integration and other projects will greatly supply domestic rubber raw materials butadiene and isoforms.

The planning of new butadiene and isoprene polymerized high-performance synthetic rubber products, and increasing the proportion of high-end chemical products in the downstream chemical industry integrated with refining and chemical integration, are the leading direction for the transformation and upgrading of China's petrochemical industry, and will contribute greatly to China's synthetic rubber technology upgrading and long-term development.

With the arrival of the low-cost period of butadiene and isoprene, the industrialization of BIR has ushered in a golden development opportunity. To use the butadiene and isoprene resources produced by themself, to plan and build BIR devices to provide new synthetic rubber products for the production of green tires in the downstream of large-scale refining and chemical integration projects, is of tremendous significance of China tire industry development.