Formosa Petrochemical Co. Relies On Siemens Again For Spent Caustic Treatment

Fifth Zimpro® Wet Air Oxidation System Ordered by Formosa

Warrendale, PA - Formosa Petrochemical Company has again chosen Siemens (formerly USFilter) to supply a Zimpro® wet air oxidation (WAO) system for ethylene spent caustic treatment. The $6 million system will be installed at Formosa Petrochemical Company's new FPCC OL-3 Ethylene Plant, in Mailiao, Yun-Lin, Taiwan, and is the fifth purchased by Formosa since 1994.

Using WAO technology will help Formosa alleviate two problems frequently associated with ethylene spent caustic: disposal and odor. The technology destroys odorous sulfides and allows acid neutralization of the spent caustic, and discharge to conventional biological treatment.

"WAO is state-of-the-art technology for treating spent caustic," says Mark Clark, WAO Applications Engineer for Siemens Zimpro Systems. "Formosa Petrochemical Company has realized the benefits of the technology over and over again at its facilities, and we're proud to help make their operations more economical and efficient."

This latest system for Formosa is the largest spent caustic wet air oxidation system provided by Siemens Zimpro Systems to date. Other Zimpro wet air oxidation ethylene spent caustic treatment systems are in use at Formosa Petrochemical plants in Texas and other areas of Taiwan.

Wet air oxidation, developed and commercialized by Zimpro Systems, is widely used to treat both refinery-spent caustic and ethylene caustic. In recent years, Zimpro Systems has supplied more than 20 wet oxidation systems for spent caustic treatment.

SOURCE: Siemens Energy, Inc. - Water Solutions