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Lummus Novolen Technology GmbH (Novolen) is a leader in polypropylene technology, with worldwide licensed capacity in excess of 7 million metric tons. Novolen is a wholly owned subsidiary of Lummus Technology, a CB&I company.
Polypropylene is a synthetic resin that is used in the production of a wide variety of consumer products.
Novolen licenses the Novolen® gas-phase process for the production of polypropylene resins. The Novolen process produces commodity and performance products that meet the requirements of even the most demanding applications. This low-cost and highly flexible process is reliable, versatile and environmentally friendly.
Overview
Polypropylene is currently one of the fastest growing polymers, with worldwide growth forecast at 6% annually through 2012. Much of this growth can be attributed to the ability of propylene polymers and copolymers to replace conventional materials (such as wood, glass, metal, etc.) and other thermoplastics at a lower cost.
The Novolen® gas-phase polypropylene process uses Ziegler-Natta and metallocene catalysts for the production of a full range of polypropylene resins. The Novolen process features low total installed cost and very competitive production economics.
It is possible to offer technology integration between propylene and polypropylene. Four processes aimed at producing or maximizing propylene from upstream refinery and petrochemical units can be offered in a package with the Novolen process, enabling producers to benefit from integration opportunities.
Process Description
Propylene, ethylene and any other required comonomers are fed into the reactor(s). Hydrogen is added to control the molecular weight. Polymerization conditions (temperature, pressure and reactant concentrations) are set by the polymer grade to be produced. The reaction itself is exothermic. Reactor cooling is achieved by evaporation of liquefied reactor gas, which is injected into the reactor. Flash evaporation of the liquid in the polymer bed ensures the most efficient heat removal.
The polymer powder is discharged from the reactor(s) and separated from the gas in the discharge vessel at atmospheric pressure. Any unreacted monomer separated from the powder is compressed and either recycled or returned to the upstream olefins unit for recovery. The polymer is flushed with nitrogen into the purge vessel to remove residual propylene. The purge vessel offgas is sent to a recovery system. The powder is conveyed to powder silos and then converted into pellets that incorporate a full range of well-dispersed additives.
For highly demanding applications requiring extremely low volatiles and odor levels, the Novolen process offers an optional desorber unit to treat the pellets after extrusion.
View animation of Novolen Process
Process Features |
Licensee Benefits |
Produces a full range of homopolymers, random and impact copolymers in only two reactors with Ziegler-Natta and metallocene catalysts using the Novolen VRCTM Technology
Parallel configuration
Cascade configuration |
Covers broad range of products for all markets/applications, including ultra-high rubber content (up to 50%) impact copolymers and terpolymers as well as very high stiffness grades and high clarity random copolymers |
Exceptional lot-to-lot and within-lot uniformity |
Necessary for film and fiber applications, which require consistent and demanding specifications |
Exclusive pellet desorbing |
Products at the lowest edge of volatile content in the marketplace with very low taste and odor level for highly demanding applications (for example, drinking water pipes and food packaging) |
Simple, solvent-free gas-phase process |
Among the lowest operating and maintenance costs in the industry |
Drop-in metallocene catalyst |
Novolen process plants converted to Novoceneª Technology, our metallocene technology for the Novolen plants; New polypropylene grades with outstanding combination of properties |
Small reactor volume and inventory |
Rapid grade changes; Minimized inventory results in inherently safer process and in reduced capital investment and operating cost |
Technical Information
Product Range
Catalyst Solutions
Ziegler-Natta Catalysts
Metallocene Catalysts
Licensing
Novolen offers comprehensive support from the planning phase through plant start-up and day-to-day operations, including integration with upstream technologies; pre-marketing assistance; help with off-take agreements; basic engineering packages; and operations training.
For more information, click here for contact details or email us at Novolen@CBI.com.
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