UOP to license TPC technology to produce butadiene

DES PLAINES, Ill.—UOP L.L.C. will begin to license TPC Group Inc's proprietary OXO-D technology to produce butadiene.

The OXO-D technology has been operated for more than 40 years, commercially converting butene to butadiene for the production of synthetic rubber used in tire and other applications.

“We believe our OXO-D technology is the most efficient, competitive and commercially proven technology in the world for the on-purpose production of butadiene,” said Mike White, senior vice president of operations and technology for TPC Group. “We look forward to working jointly with UOP to continue to advance our leading on-purpose butadiene technology through UOP's depth of knowledge and experience as a licensor within our industry.”

Butadiene production is not keeping up with demand because of changes in refining and petrochemical production in recent years, according to Pete Piotrowski, senior vice president and general manager of UOP's Process Technology and Equipment business unit. “This ‘butadiene gap' can be closed with new technologies to produce on-purpose butadiene,” he said.

TPC Group is a North American producer of butene and finished butadiene. It sells products to a wide range of performance, specialty and intermediate markets, including synthetic rubber, fuels, lubricant additives, plastics and surfactants. Headquartered in Houston, the company has manufacturing facilities in Houston, Port Neches and Baytown, Texas, and operates a butadiene product terminal in Lake Charles, La.

UOP, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., develops and licenses process technology for the refining and petrochemical industries.

Butadiene has been traditionally produced as a byproduct of the naphtha cracking processes. In recent years, refiners have moved to using lighter feedstocks to make ethylene and propylene, key building blocks for plastics, causing less byproduct butadiene to be produced. At the same time, supply of butene, also a byproduct of refining processes, remains comparatively plentiful.