Installation of water charging of a PVC plant

Identifier:  TFG:2935

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/TFG2935

Authors:  Molina Valls, Pedro José

Abstract:
As a consequence of the successive expansions and modifications of the PVC plant capacity and following improvements introduced in the process, the installation of the water storage is susceptible to significant advances. The optimization of the water storage system and the upgrading in the load flowrate can lead to an important decrease in the cycle time of the reactors with the consequent economic improvements. It is for this reason that this project comprises a new design in the water storage system of a polyvinyl chloride plant from vinyl chloride and water as main raw materials in order to produce 200.000 tons of polymer per year. PVC is a thermoplastic material which is obtained by the polymerization of the vinyl chloride as a monomer through a full process of a polymerization chain. PVC is one of the most widely used plastics together with the polyethylene and the polypropylene. Due to its properties it offers a wide range of functionalities in different fields (domestic or industrial) as it can be seen in the construction, mechanic applications, furniture, electricity or car industry among others. To produce polyvinyl chloride, we can follow four different manufacture process. The most commonly used are the polymerization in suspension and the polymerization in emulsion. The difference between the can be found in the size of the polymer particle. It is for this reason that PVC has specific proprieties and different functionalities. PVC in suspension can be used to produce great quantities of pipes, medical products or packaging. PVC in emulsion has more specific uses such as electric coating, furniture, toys and coating. The plant to be optimized, which is located in the Tarragona chemical cluster, currently manufactures 185.000 tons and the objective is to produce 200.000 tons/year using the suspension process.