03-03-2016

Air Products provides PRISM® membrane separators to Shenhua Ningxia coal-to-liquids project

Air Products PRISM Membranes division in Saint Louis, Missouri, has received a significant order to provide a large quantity of membrane separators to the Ningdong Energy and Chemical Industry Base in Ningxia, China, for use as part of the Shenhua Ningxia Coal-to-Liquids Project. The membranes will be part of a hydrogen purification and recycling operation that is expected to start-up later this year.

“This coal-to-liquids project demonstrates China’s advanced capabilities in the energy industry, and we are very proud to be part of it,” said Peter Fung, business manager of Permea China Limited, a division of Air Products PRISM Membranes. “The membrane system is designed to process up to 280,000 standard cubic meters per hour of gas flow, which is an important factor in the efficiency of the overall project.”

Impure hydrogen that is produced by processing the coal passes through the membrane system, which removes contaminants and purifies the valuable hydrogen gas for reuse. The PRISM® Membrane Separators contain polymeric hollow fibers that use selective permeation under differential pressure to separate hydrogen from methane, carbon monoxide, and other hydrocarbons.

China’s largest PRISM membrane system was installed in 2007 and started up in 2008 for a coal liquefaction project in Ordos, Inner Mongolia. PRISM Membrane Separators have also been used to produce oxygen enriched breathing air for passengers on China's high altitude Qinghai-Tibet Railway.

Air Products’ PRISM Membrane Separators are manufactured exclusively at its facility in Saint Louis, Missouri (USA) and sold throughout Asia by Permea China Limited. Since 1977, a team of engineers from Air Products in the U.S., Belgium, China, and Norway has custom engineered, fabricated, and delivered over 500 process gas systems.