Futuristic Solutions Make Way for the E-cracking Technology

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The ‘E-cracking’ or ‘electric’ cracking technology has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by at least 90 % as compared to other traditional crackers. By utilizing electricity from renewable sources, the technology has the capacity to decarbonize one of the most energy-intensive processes in the chemical industry. PROCESS Worldwide tracks down the progress made in this space.

The goal of industrial plants is to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. This also means that facilities can no longer continue to operate in the same traditional manner and will have to make significant changes to decarbonize their processes. For this purpose, various technologies are being explored to reduce CO2 emissions in the short term and ultimately reach net zero emissions by the above-mentioned deadline. One of these is the ‘E-cracking’ technology which is currently making news across the sector.

Everyone is talking about the ‘E-cracking’ Technology

Petrochemical complexes have large steam crackers which is a vital part of the overall complex. Powered by fossil fuel gases, these furnaces produce ethylene, propylene, butadiene, aromatics and acetylene at high temperatures and also emit large amounts of CO2. To reduce these emissions, many major organizations are working to develop an ‘e-cracker’ i.e. an ‘e-cracking’ technology which can electrically heat steam cracker furnaces instead of using fossil fuel gases.

Explaining the core advantage of this technology for the chemical industry, Dr. Michael Reitz, Technology Manager Steamcracker/e-Furnace, Global Technology Basic Petrochemicals, BASF says, “By using electricity from renewable sources instead of natural gas, the new technology has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions of one of the most energy-intensive production processes in the chemical industry by at least 90% compared to technologies commonly used today.”

Agreeing with this, Executive Director of the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) - Petrochemicals Europe, Frans P.A. Stokman also mentions another benefit, “The e-cracking technology facilitates the conversion of feedstocks such as bio-naphtha and pyrolysis oil from plastic waste, a process known as ‘chemical recycling’, contributing to the circular economy by diverting plastic waste from landfills and incineration.”

Geographically, Europe is currently the hotbed of these next-generation crackers as three major ‘e-cracker’ initiatives are being explored in this region. Stokman elaborates, “Crackers in Europe represent 20-25 % of the EU chemical industry’s greenhouse gas emissions. This is due to the high temperatures of >800 degrees Celsius, fueled by traditional fuels. By replacing these fuel-fired furnaces with electrical furnaces, powered by renewable sources, in combination with other electrification measures, electric cracking has the potential to significantly reduce our industry’s greenhouse gas emissions.” E-crackers will also help the region to meet its EU Green Deal goals.

It’s action time!

World’s first demonstration plant for electrically heated steam crackers

The world’s first demonstration plant for electrically heated steam crackers is all set to be completed by the end of 2023. Led by prominent market leaders – BASF, Sabic and Linde, the project will be fully integrated into one of the existing steam crackers at BASF’s Verbund site in Ludwigshafen, Germany. A funding of 14.8 million euros has been granted by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action under its ‘Decarbonization in Industry’ funding program to support the development of this technology.

“The main goal of the efurnance demonstration plant is to show continuous olefin production using electric energy as a heat source and serve as a reference for an industrial-scale plant,” opines Reitz elaborating on the project. “The plant is designed in a way that two heating concepts can be tested in parallel: Direct heating applies an electric current directly to the process tubes inside the reactor; indirect heating uses radiative heat of heating elements placed around the tubes. Testing these two concepts will make it possible to react flexibly to different customer and site requirements.”

He goes onto share that they have not only developed the world’s first electrical heating concepts for steam crackers, but also want to demonstrate the reliability of key components, like materials of construction and custom-made components, for use in this type of high temperature reactors.

Shell and Dow start up experimental unit to electrically heat steam cracker furnaces

The British multinational oil & gas firm Shell and the US-based materials science company Dow shared their intention to develop an ‘e-cracking’ technology and this plan has been backed by the Dutch Government under its MOOI (Mission-driven Research, Development and Innovation subsidy) scheme. The companies have also collaborated with the Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) and the Institute for Sustainable Process Technology (ISPT) for the ambitious project.

In 2021, the Dutch Government’s ‘e-mission MOOI’ project focused on developing two technological routes to help in the electrification of the steam cracking process for Shell and Dow in order to produce low-carbon olefins. The ISPT has mentioned on its website that the first route is the drop-in solution, where the current process is used as a basis, with the aim to replace the current burner with an electrical equivalent. Whereas, the 2nd route is the development of a completely new heating concept.

In 2022, Shell and Dow went ahead and started up an experimental unit to electrically heat steam cracker furnaces in The Netherlands. According to a press release by Shell, data generated by the unit will be used to validate the model and allow the electrification program to advance to the next phase; the design and construction of a multi-megawatt pilot plant, with potential start-up in 2025, subject to investment support.

‘Cracker of the Future’ Consortium

Another significant team which is working on the e-cracking technology is the ‘Cracker of the Future’ consortium. Spearheaded by five leading firms – Borealis, BP, Total Energies, Repsol and Versalis (Eni), the consortium aims to develop a game changing technology for the electrification of the steam cracking process.

A 2021 press release published by Brightlands Chemelot Campus, which provides process and content support for the consortium, had stated that the consortium is evaluating different technology opportunities and will soon announce one of its preferred highly promising options while a few other promising concepts need further assessment before it can come to a decision. It also shared that demonstration for the technology is being planned for 2023 and commercial availability could be delivered by 2026. We contacted Brightlands Chemelot Campus, which provides process and content support for the consortium, for an update on the progress, however, no information was shared with us.

Vital role between governments and chemical companies

If any new technology in the market needs to be successful, it requires a constant and strong support from various parties. Like in this case, governments, policy makers and chemical companies play a vital role for the success of this novel technology. Reitz elaborates, “We are on schedule in terms of technical development. However, this technology will not be economical under the current framework conditions. Investment support and competitive renewable energy prices together with expansion of electric grids are important prerequisites. Action by government agencies is crucial for both the promotion of technology development and the expansion of renewable energies and power grids.”

Adding to this, Stokman mentions that the success of new technologies of this scale and impact requires deep collaboration between various players in various formats. “All projects in the e-cracker space are implemented based on the latest policies in a consortia of petrochemicals companies with crackers in their asset base, technology provider companies, equipment manufacturers, among other players, in close cooperation with Member States and the European Commission.”

He goes on to share that many of the e-cracking projects are currently in the pilot and demonstration phases. Scaling these technologies to industrial production is a critical step. “Achieving this scale demands a substantial and reliable supply of low-carbon electricity. This requires significant investments in infrastructure and capacity. Collaborative efforts between governments, policy makers, and the private sector are vital in securing the required resources and support for these investments,” continues Stokman.

With the necessary support and infrastructure in place, there will be a high demand for e-crackers across the globe as industrial plants will look to decarbonize their processes in order to achieve their net zero ambitions by 2050. Hence, major international players in the sector are keeping a close watch on the development of this technology as they are aware that e-crackers can become a potential and ‘must-have’ technology in the near future.

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