German chemical producer Evonik and compatriot engineering contractor Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions will license Evonik’s hydrogen peroxide-to-propylene oxide (HPPO) Technology to China’s Zibo Qixiang Tengda Chemical – part of the Cedar Holdings Group – for use in a propylene oxide plant the Chinese company is building at Zibo in China’s Shandong province.

Separately, Evonik has licensed to Qixiang Tengda the production of hydrogen peroxide for exclusive supply of the PO plant. The two companies also have entered into a long-term agreement for supply of the respective HPPO catalyst.

Along with 300,000 t/y of PO, the complex will produce the amount of H2O2 required for the HPPO process annually. The initial planning phase will start next month, and the plant is due on stream in the first half of 2022.

Evonik said tightening environmental regulations support the strategic focus of its Active Oxygens business line, which is to further promote and expand green HPPO Technology, through licensing, in addition to developing the traditional hydrogen peroxide business.

Claus Rettig, chairman of the board of Evonik Resource Efficiency, said HPPO is the technology of choice for sustainable production of propylene oxide because it produces no major byproducts apart from water. The process is powered by a catalyst based on titanium silicalite (TS-1), developed by Evonik especially for the process.

Compared to conventional production processes for propylene oxide, Rettig said the HPPO process requires a significantly lower investment volume and is more profitable.