Test Plant for Dimethyl Ether Synthesis Technology CompletedConstruction of a test plant to verify synthesis technology for dimethyl ether (DME), a new source of clean energy, has been completed in Kushiro, northern Japan. The plant is part of a research project being promoted by NKK, Taiheiyo Coal Mining Co. and Sumitomo Metal Industries, jointly with the Center for Coal Utilization, Japan. The project is aimed at advancing low-cost DME mass production technology and is backed by the Agency of Natural Resources and Energy under the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, with a grant for promoting coal utilization technology. With the emerging energy demand in Asia, a stable energy supply is one of the crucial issues today in the region, coupled with environmental considerations. While demand for LPG, LNG and other clean energies is expected to grow, a rise in prices is also causing concern. Thus, calls are increasing for developing a technology to convert coal, which is in abundant supply in the Asia-Pacific region, into clean energy, focusing on the effective use of untapped natural resources such as low-grade coal and coal-bed methane. DME is a clean fuel emitting less CO2 than coal. It can be synthesized by making use of coal-bed methane, which has a much higher greenhouse effect than CO2. The effective use of the methane gas in this way is also conducive to curbing global warming. Currently, about 10,000 tons of DME is produced annually in Japan through a methanol dehydration process and is used mainly as an aerosol propellant for cosmetic products. DME (CH3OCH3)is a chemically stable colorless gas with a boiling point of -25°C. It is very safe and easy to handle and can be easily liquefied, transported, and stored just like LPG. DME is a clean burning gas with a greater calorific value than methane and is just as safe to use as methane. Due to these characteristics, DME is expected to find wide-ranging applications as a clean fuel, prompting the development of technology to produce it inexpensively in large quantities. NKK has been conducting its own DME synthesis research since 1989 using a small (50kg-per-day)bench plant. NKK's test results were incorporated in the MITI joint project, which began with installing a scaled-up test plant with a daily capacity of five tons at the Kushiro Colliery of Taiheiyo Coal Mining. The DME synthesis experiments will be conducted using methane available from coal layers in the colliery. The innovative direct synthesis process makes use of coal or coal-bed methane to produce synthesis gas (main components: hydrogen and carbon monoxide), which is then converted into DME in a slurry bed reactor dispersed with specially developed catalysts. Major facilities at the test plant built on a 3,000m2 site include a synthesis gas production/purification system, a 20m-high DME synthesis unit and DME purification columns. About 30 researchers will engage in test operations at the new research center set up in the Colliery. The ¥2-billion five-year research project runs from fiscal 1997 through 2001. Following the completion of the test plant, performance tests and data analyses will be conducted during fiscal 1999 and 2000, followed by an overall system evaluation during fiscal 2001. Should the new technology be established to directly synthesize large quantities of DME, which is a clean, easy-to-handle fuel free of ash and sulfur resulting from the combustion of coal, various potential applications can be expected, including 1) alternative fuel to LPG, 2) clean fuel for diesel engines, with potential use for fuel-cell vehicles, and 3) clean fuel for high-efficiency power generation. The three companies working in the joint project intend to strive for early commercial applications of the new DME synthesis technology, so as to serve stable energy supply needs in Asia while helping to preserve the global environment.
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