[Dahe Finance Cube reporter Chen Weiwen Li Bo Photography]The burning main torch of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou uses "green zero-carbon methanol", which is not only the first time in the history of the Asian Games, but also the first time in large-scale sports events around the world. Because of the Hangzhou Asian Games, methanol, a green fuel, has entered the public’s field of vision.
On September 27th, Dahe Finance Cube reporter came to Anyang Shunli Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd., where the methanol fuel of the main torch of the Asian Games was synthesized and processed. Let’s reveal what kind of fuel "green zero-carbon methanol" is.
Why is green methanol a zero-carbon fuel?
Torch is an indispensable element in Asian Games, Olympic Games and other important sports events. People have used magnesium, natural resin, liquefied gas and even olive oil as torch fuel. With the improvement of environmental protection requirements, most torches after 1996 used carbon-containing fuels such as propane or propane mixture, and the Tokyo Olympic Games used hydrogen fuel.
"Considering the environmental protection requirements, there are not many choices that can be used as the main torch fuel. Before, people used more natural gas and hydrogen." Shen Yuan, general manager of Geely Holding Group Collaborative Innovation Center, said, but natural gas will also emit carbon dioxide after burning, and the use of natural gas requires laying pipelines and transporting them through pipelines, which is relatively expensive; Although hydrogen has zero emission, it faces some challenges in storage, transportation and safety, and it is not the best choice.
Methanol is a liquid at normal temperature and pressure, and it has been used as a fuel for hundreds of years. However, in the past, methanol was mainly prepared from coal, which produced not only water but also carbon dioxide during combustion, which did not meet the requirements of environmental protection.
Fortunately, with the progress of science and technology, people can now synthesize green low-carbon methanol from carbon dioxide and hydrogen by thermal catalytic reaction.
Each ton of methanol can consume 1.375 tons of carbon dioxide, and the carbon dioxide emitted by methanol combustion is about 26% less than that of gasoline, and the particulate matter is about 80% less. It can also be regenerated from carbon dioxide to realize carbon cycle.
What can methanol do besides lighting the torch?
Geely Science and Technology Group and Henan Shuncheng Group jointly invested in the establishment of Anyang Shunli Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd., and this green and low-carbon methanol synthesis method landed in Anyang.
According to Meng Dewei, Chairman and General Manager of Henan Shunli Alcohol and Hydrogen Energy Technology Co., Ltd., in July, 2020, the company launched the project of "Producing Green Low-carbon Methanol and Co-producing LNG with CO2", covering an area of 226 mu with a total investment of 700 million yuan.
This project comprehensively utilizes the coke oven gas rich in hydrogen and methane of Shuncheng Group and captures carbon dioxide from industrial waste gas to synthesize methanol and co-produce LNG (liquefied natural gas). It is not only the first set of industrial production equipment for methanol production from carbon dioxide hydrogenation in China, but also the largest production equipment for methanol production from carbon dioxide hydrogenation in the world.
The project can comprehensively utilize 360 million standard cubic meters of coke oven gas every year, produce 110,000 tons of methanol and co-produce 70,000 tons of liquefied natural gas, with an estimated annual sales income of 560 million yuan. By synthesizing methanol, the project directly reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 160,000 tons, which is equivalent to increasing forest area by 160,000 mu.
"The project was officially put into production in February this year, and the green zero-carbon methanol it produced just caught up with the supply of Hangzhou Asian Games this year." The deputy general manager of Shuncheng Group in Henan Province said that methanol can not only be used as torch fuel, but also be a way for the automobile industry to reduce pollution emissions and reduce its dependence on fossil fuels.
At the Asian Games in Hangzhou, Geely’s long-distance methanol-powered heavy truck was the main torch fuel support vehicle, which fully demonstrated the methanol energy preparation, methanol energy transportation and distribution system, and methanol vehicle application full link closed loop.
At present, the ecological platform of Geely’s long-range new energy commercial vehicle group, Alcohol and Hydrogen Ecological Technology, has laid out green factories and core powertrain intelligent factories for commercial vehicles in Shaanxi, Hainan, Sichuan and other provinces and cities, and the leading products cover all application scenarios of commercial vehicles.
Editor: Ren Haopeng | Review: Li Jinyu | Review: Li Zhen | Supervision: Wan Junwei
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