The 51st International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva wrapped up recently in Geneva, Switzerland. Sinoketol™, RIPP’s green and high-efficiency cyclohexanone production technology, has won the Gold Medal among more than 1,000 inventions from 35 countries and regions, recognized for its exceptional innovation, environmental performance and economic efficiency. The award highlights RIPP’s robust scientific and technological innovation capabilities and brings international recognition to Sinopec.
Founded in 1973, the International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva is among the world’s oldest and largest international invention exhibitions, serving as a key global platform for showcasing innovative achievements and a vital window for technological exchange.
Led by Zong Baoning, Chief Specialist of Sinopec, RIPP Caprolactam Team has pioneered globally a novel reaction route for cyclohexanone production via cyclohexene esterification and hydrogenation. This breakthrough overcomes multiple bottlenecks of conventional pathways and delivers original innovation in basic chemical manufacturing technology.
This new technology has three distinct advantages: First, superior chemical reaction route. Compared with the cyclohexene hydration route, it offers significant thermodynamic and kinetic advantages. The equilibrium conversion of cyclohexene esterification is over eight times higher, while the reaction activation energy is reduced by 14%.
Second, outstanding economic efficiency. The single-pass conversion of cyclohexene exceeds 99.95%, eliminating energy-intensive cyclohexene separation and greatly cutting recycling and separation energy consumption. Meanwhile, low-value acetic acid is converted into high-value anhydrous ethanol, further enhancing economics. Production costs are reduced by hundreds of yuan per ton versus cyclohexene hydration route, and thousands of yuan lower per ton compared to cyclohexane oxidation.
Third, remarkable green and low-carbon performance. This technolgoy enables waste discharge cut by more than 70%, and carbon emissions reduced by over 38%, significantly mitigating the environmental impact of chemical production and providing technical support for addressing environmental challenges such as “chemical industries clustering along rivers.” A full-process safety risk control system has also been established to improve inherent process safety. To date, more than 40 Chinese patents and 3 international patents have been filed with full independent intellectual property rights, placing the overall technology at an internationally leading level.
The world’s first commercial unit utilizing this new technology, with two 200,000 t/a production lines, has been commissioned at Hunan Petrochemical, helping reduce CO₂ emissions by 1.8 million tons every year.
