Advancing the industrial production of propylene oxide toward inherent safety and environmental sustainability: A mini review

Jin Hanlin; Tian Yupeng; Liu Yujia; Zhao Chenyang; Yang Yizhou; Gong Ming; Yang Xuejing; Sun Bing

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Advancing the industrial production of propylene oxide toward inherent safety and environmental sustainability: A mini review

Updated：2026-08-24

- Advancing the industrial production of propylene oxide toward inherent safety and environmental sustainability: A mini review
- Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering Vol. 94, Issue 6, Pages: 259-267(2026)
- Affiliations：
  
  East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
  State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
  State Key Laboratory of Chemical Safety, SINOPEC Research Institute of Safety Engineering Co., Ltd., Qingdao 266000, China
  Department of Chemistry and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
- Author bio：
  
  Corresponding authors. E-mail addresses: xj.yang@ecust.edu.cn(X. Yang)
  sunb.qday@sinopec.com(B. Sun)
- Funds：
- DOI：
  CLC：
- Received：03 June 2025，
  
  Revised：2025-10-16，
  
  Accepted：17 October 2025，
  
  Online First：28 January 2026，
  
  Published：2026-06
- Accepted：
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Jin Hanlin, Tian Yupeng, Liu Yujia, et al. Advancing the industrial production of propylene oxide toward inherent safety and environmental sustainability: A mini review[J]. Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 2026, 94(6): 259-267.
DOI：

Jin Hanlin, Tian Yupeng, Liu Yujia, et al. Advancing the industrial production of propylene oxide toward inherent safety and environmental sustainability: A mini review[J]. Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 2026, 94(6): 259-267. DOI：

摘要

Abstract

Propylene oxide (PO) is an important chemical intermediate that has experienced a continuous rise in annual demand. Traditional processes such as the chlorohydrin process and hydrogen peroxide-propylene oxide process (HPPO) are gradually being phased out due to environmental pollution

complex procedures

and economic inefficiencies. The discovery of the titanium silicalite-1 zeolite has markedly improved the activity and selectivity of the HPPO process

facilitating its industrial application. Nonetheless

the costs associated with the storage and transportation of H

along with its safety risks during the process

continue to pose a limitation. This paper presents a comprehensive review of the current industrial status

risk analysis

and advancements in inherent safety research concerning the production of PO. The review systematically assesses the advantages and limitations of various production processes

focusing on safety

environmental impact

and lifecycle risk analysis. The gas-phase epoxidation of propylene and electrochemical epoxidation technology have become prominent research areas due to their mild reaction conditions

streamlined processes

and risk reduction at

the source. These approaches provide new directions for inherently-safer PO production. Future efforts should prioritize addressing challenges in catalyst performance and process integration to propel the PO industry toward greater efficiency

safety

and sustainability.

关键词

Keywords

references

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