Glycerine and Intermediates

This report is concerned with the cost and technology of the manufacture of glycerine and its intermediates, from propylene. The three major processes for producing synthetic glycerine are evaluated in detail. All of these glycerine processes have a common raw material--propylene, which has made it possible to make a direct cost comparison of the three processes.

Many of the intermediate chemicals between propylene and glycerine have commercial value themselves, This report is organized so that costs associated with the manufacture of epichlorohydrin, ally1 chloride, acrolein, and allyl alcohol can be readily obtained.

Several simplifying assumptions were necessary, to keep the scope of this report in reasonable bounds. Some of the evaluated processes require large amounts of certain chemicals and in practice the manufacturer would probably find it more economic to produce his own requirements. For simplicity, it was necessary to estimate the purchased cost of hydrogen peroxide, peracetic acid, and secondary butyl alcohol.

Information for the section on industry status was gathered mainly from the trade journals. The Glycerine Producers Association supplied information on the uses and applications for glycerine. Process information was derived primarily from patents; however, in several instances comments by operating and licensing companies were particularly helpful.