38f29fc1-dc9a-4835-b8a4-ed4e1ec20ff7Benzeneproduction mix, at plantProcessesIndustry dataPlasticsEurope//www.plasticseurope.org/plasticssustainability/eco-profiles.aspx101EU27 including NorwayAll processes are considererd including waste treatment of process waste"Benzene is commercially produced based on three different feedstocks:
- Pyrolysis gasoline, a side product of thermal cracking (steam cracking) of hydrocarbons (e.g. naphtha, gas oil, ethane, propane, butanes, natural gas liquids)
- Reformate, a product of catalytic reforming of naphtha
- Light Oil, a condensate fraction of coke oven gas from coal pyrolysis
Additionally, the three aromatics can be chemically transferred into each other by means of transalkylation and disproportionation reactions (for example toluene to benzene and xylenes).
In Europe (EU27) benzene is mainly produced via pyrolysis gasoline and reformate. Since in Europe only 5 % of the BTX aromatics are produced from coke oven gas, this production route is not considered in dataset.
Raw pyrolysis gasoline has to be hydrotreated. The further processing steps of hydrotreated pyrolysis gasoline and reformate are basically identical.
The feedstock (either hydrotreated pyrolysis gasoline or reformate) is fractionated in a first distillation column into a benzene/toluene cut, which contains also the nonaromatic compounds, and into the higher boiling xylenes (including ethylbenzene and styrene) and higher aromatics fraction. Benzene and toluene are separated from the nonaromatics (raffinate) by solvent extraction (liquid-liquid extraction).
In a transalkylation/disproportionation unit, overhead toluene can be converted into additional xylenes. For transalkylation, higher aromatics (e.g. trimethylbenzenes) are co-fed with toluene to produce only xylenes. During disproportionation, two toluene molecules react to form one molecule of benzene and xylenes, respectively.
The xylenes and higher aromatics obtained at the bottom of the feed splitter column together with the xylenes produced in the transalkylation/disproportionation unit are charged to a xylene column. This fractionation unit is designed to either completely separate the xylenes from higher aromatics or to recover also a part of o-xylene in the bottoms. In the latter case, o-xylene can be obtained as product after another distillation step. Higher aromatics (C9+) are either used in toluene transalkylation or blended into the gasoline pool.
The xylenes from the top of the xylene column are fed to the so-called xylene loop, consisting of a p-xylene extraction unit and a xylene isomerisation unit. In the first unit high purity p-xylene is extracted from the equilibrium xylene mixture either by crystallization or by adsorptive separation. The remaining xylene mixture (containing also ethylbenzene and styrene) is fed to an isomerisation unit where a near-equilibrium distribution of xylene isomers is re-established, meaning that new p-xylene is formed from the remaining o- and m-xylenes. The catalyst used here also isomerizes ethylbenzene selectively to xylene isomers in their equilibrium ratio. Hydrogen is added to the isomerisation unit to prevent hydrogenolysis of the aromatics on the metal sites. After separation from light by-products (light ends (methane and hydrogen), benzene, toluene) through fractionation and from unsaturated components the mixed xylenes (and by-product C9+-aromatics) are recycled to the xylene column."Partly terminated systemOtherNoneOtherNoneNoneNoneNoneImport from ILCD to GaBi format:
# all emissions to water, unspecified interpreted as emissions to fresh water
# all emissions to soil, unspecified interpreted as emisssions to industrial soilNoneThömmes, T. et. al. (2013)90.07,700 Kt in 2010 (share of APA members is at least 90% of European production)literature values based on European company surveys & European statisticsnoneAll relevant flows quantifiedPlastics EuropePlasticsEurope Eco-profilesThis eco-profile (LCI) is intended to be used as »cradle-to-gate« building blocks of life cycle assessment (LCA) studies of defined applications or products. LCA studies considering the full life cycle (»cradle-to-grave«) of an application or product allow for comparative assertions to be derived. It is essential to note that comparisons cannot be made at the level of the polymer or its precursors. In order to compare the performance of different materials, the whole life cycle and the effects of relevant life cycle parameters must be considered. It is intended to be used by member companies, to support product-orientated environmental management; by users of plastics, as a building block of life cycle assessment (LCA) studies of individual products; and by other interested parties, as a source of life cycle information.Thömmes, T.2014-12-01T00:00:00+01:00ILCD format 1.1Thömmes, T. et. al. (2013)PE INTERNATIONAL2014-12-01T00:00:00+01:0009.00.000Data set finalised; entirely publishedPlastics EuropetrueOtherGaBi (source code, database including extension modules and single data sets, documentation) remains property of PE INTERNATIONAL AG. PE INTERNATIONAL AG delivers GaBi licenses comprising data storage medium and manual as ordered by the customer. The license guarantees the right of use for one installation of GaBi. Further installations using the same license are not permitted. Additional licenses are only valid if the licensee holds at least one main license. Licenses are not transferable and must only be used within the licensee's organisation. Data sets may be copied for internal use. The number of copies is restricted to the number of licenses of the software system GaBi the licensee owns. The right of use is exclusively valid for the licensee. All rights reserved.BenzeneOutput110.000Mixed primary / secondaryUnknown derivation