PVC Production at Steel Plants on the Basis of Vertical Integration

Abstract

Global and Russian markets for polyvinylchloride (PVC) are compared and contrasted. The carbide technology used in PVC production may be competitive on the basis of cooperation between steel plants, coal mines, and power companies within a single region, thanks to logistical savings associated with lower costs of resource extraction and transportation. Potentially, there is considerable scope for Russian PVC production, with the corresponding decrease in imports. Vertical integration of steel plants with mining and processing enterprises in the Kuznetsk Basin provides new options for PVC production. Cost assessment of the options for acetylene production may be based on factorial analysis. Note that, rather than methane produced from coal beds and supplied in liquefied form, steel plants may use coke-oven gas from coke production as the raw material in PVC synthesis. Acetylene produced by the carbide technology may compete with ethylene as a raw material for PVC production if its cost does not exceed that of ethylene by more than 40%. Analysis in terms of coal chemistry facilitates the development of multistage synthesis of PVC on the basis of cooperation between chemical and steel enterprises. The organization of PVC production by means of coal-based technology may be a source of economic growth in the Kemerovo region, permitting diversification of steel production and expansion of the output of PAO Koks in terms of product range and exports.