METRICS FOR EVALUATING ETHYLENE PRODUCTION USING OXIDATIVE DEHYDROGENATION

An economic and environmental approach for analyzing the potential of a new chemical processing technology for multiple grades of ethylene is described. In order to optimize the design and implementation of a new process, a set of performance metrics were identified and calculated for ethylene production. These performance metrics could be used by the chemical industry to analyze the potential of new technologies. Economic evaluations are based on the Cost of Production in relation to current market pricing, spot or contract. The Cost of Production is calculated from the Required Netback and is a methodology practiced in industry to define instantaneous production economics. The Required Netback represents the sum of the variable costs, fixed costs and capital recovery of production; all of which is expressed as US dollars per kilogram of the main product: ethylene. This is then compared to current pricing; if the Required Netback is less than the market price then the technology will have favorable economics. This approach also includes current steam pyrolysis technology as a baseline for evaluating the promise of a novel technology. In the case of ethylene via oxidative dehydrogenation, the improvement in Cost of Production comes from a drastic reduction in capital cost and energy requirements. In this current analysis, Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ethane is compared with Conventional Steam Pyrolysis and is shown to be superior in all of the performance metrics. The expected Cost of Production for polymer grade ethylene is $0.25 per pound.