Recently, the world's first 5,000 tons/year carbon dioxide hydrogenation of methanol industrial test device in CNOOC Offshore Oil Fudao Co., Ltd. to achieve stable operation, through the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation organized by the expert group on-site assessment and technical assessment. The device uses the nano-limited non-precious metal catalyst and its core technology independently developed by the Shanghai Institute of Advanced Studies of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and is designed by China Chengda Engineering Co., LTD., and constructed and operated by CNOOC Fudao Co., LTD.

Since 2012, with the support of key and major scientific research projects such as the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission, the team of Sun Yuhan and Wang Hui of the Shanghai Institute of Advanced Studies of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has developed a new nano composite oxide high efficiency copper based catalyst with independent intellectual property rights, which has solved the problems of low carbon dioxide conversion rate and easy inactivation of the catalyst. The catalyst has passed 4000h stability experiment and industrial single tube verification, forming an industrial catalyst with independent intellectual property rights and its scale-up production process, and realizing large-scale industrial production. On this basis, CNOOC Offshore Oil Fudao Company, Shanghai Institute for Advanced Studies of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and China Chengda Engineering Co., Ltd. cooperated to carry out an industrial test of 5000 tons/year. In July 2020, the industrial test device was successfully operated once, which opened up the whole process, produced qualified products and achieved stable operation, and all indicators met the design requirements.

On September 25, 2020, the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation organized experts for on-site assessment and technical evaluation. Researcher Wang Hui of the Shanghai Advanced Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences reported on behalf of the three cooperating parties about the research progress of the key technology for methanol production via carbon dioxide hydrogenation and the operation of the industrial test unit. Academicians Han Buxing and Chen Jianfeng chaired the meeting where experts reviewed work reports, research reports, novelty reports, and assessment reports. They unanimously agreed that this technology has solved core problems in the large-scale utilization of carbon dioxide resources in China. Compared with similar technologies at home and abroad, the main technical indicators are advanced, laying a solid foundation for large-scale industrial applications. It is recommended to accelerate the industrialization process of this project.

In the short term, this technology can be combined with China's hydrogen-rich industries (propane dehydrogenation, ethane cracking, coke oven gas, and chlor-alkali) to synthesize low-cost green methanol, driving the transformation and upgrading of China's traditional industries. In the medium and long term, as electrolytic hydrogen production technology advances and costs decrease, it can be integrated with renewable energy/nuclear energy for hydrogen production to achieve carbon-negative methanol synthesis, promoting the formation of a circular, sustainable green and clean energy ecosystem.

Wu Qing, Chief engineer of Science and Technology Information Department of CNOOC Group, Hou Xiaofeng, President of CNOOC Chemical Co., LTD., Yao Ye, general manager of CNOOC Offshore Oil Fudao Co., LTD., Zheng LAN, deputy general manager of China Chengda Engineering Co., LTD., and Huang Weiguang, vice president of Shanghai Institute for Advanced Study of Chinese Academy of Sciences, attended the meeting and delivered speeches.