Commodity Production Costs Report
UHVI Polyalphaolefins Production
Polyalphaolefin Operating Costs & Plant Construction Costs
This report assesses the economics of industrial Ultra High Viscosity Index (UHVI) Polyalphaolefins (PAO) production, assuming a plant located in the United States.
The report provides a comprehensive study of Polyalphaolefin production and related Polyalphaolefin production cost, covering three key aspects: a complete description of the Polyalphaolefin production process examined; an in-depth analysis of the related Polyalphaolefin plant capital cost (Capex); and an evaluation of the respective Polyalphaolefin plant operating costs (Opex).
The Polyalphaolefin production process description includes a block flow diagram (BFD), an overview of the industrial site installations, detailing both the process unit and the necessary infrastructure, process consumption figures and comprehensive process flow diagrams (PFD). The Polyalphaolefin plant capital cost analysis breaks down the Capex by plant cost (i.e., ISBL, OSBL and Contingency); owner's cost; working capital; and costs incurred during industrial plant commissioning and start-up. The Polyalphaolefin plant operating costs analysis covers operating expenses, including variable costs like raw materials and utilities, and fixed costs such as maintenance, labor, and depreciation.
Key reference(s): ?

The process is divided into three main areas: (1) oligomerization; (2) purification; and (3) hydrogenation.
Oligomerization. A stream of fresh and recycled linear alpha olefin is fed to a fixed-bed reactor packed with a chromium oxide based catalyst. In the reactor, the olefin monomers react to form longer chain molecules by oligomerization. The resulting stream is then sent to purification steps downstream.
Purification. The product stream from the oligomerization is first distilled under vacuum to recover unreacted monomers as the distillate, which is recycled back to the reactor while the bottom stream is fed to a second column operating under higher vacuum. This second column is responsible for removing lighter fractions with short molecules as the distillate stream, leaving the heavier fractions flow as the column's bottom stream, which composes the desired product. Both streams are then sent to a hydrogenation step.
Hydrogenation. Each stream is fed to a fixed-bed reactor packed with a nickel based catalyst where they will be hydrogenated. As a result of hydrogenation of the heavier fractions stream, the main product UHVI Polyalphaolefins is obtained, while the lighter fractions stream results in the by-product LVI Polyalphaolefins.
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Professional report based on Q3 2024 economic data, ensuring timely evaluations.
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Content Highlights
Plant Capital Cost Summary
Summary outlining the capital cost required for building the Polyalphaolefin production plant examined.
Plant Capital Cost Details
Detailing of fixed capital (ISBL, OSBL & Owner’s Cost), working capital and additional capital requirements.
Plant Cost Breakdowns
Breakdown of Polyalphaolefin process unit (ISBL) costs and infrastructure (OSBL) costs; plant cost breakdown per discipline.
Operating Costs Summary
Summary presenting the operating variable costs and the total operating cost of the Polyalphaolefin production plant studied.
Operating Cost Details
Detailing of utilities costs, operating fixed costs and depreciation.
Plant Capacity Assessment
Comparative analysis of capital investment and operating costs for different Polyalphaolefin plant capacities.
Production Process Information
Block Flow Diagram, descriptions of process unit (ISBL) and site infrastructure (OSBL).
Process Consumptions
Raw materials and utilities consumption figures, by-products credits, labor requirements
Process Diagrams
Process flow diagrams (PFD), equipment list and industrial site configuration
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