(40b) Will Steam Crackers Go the Way of the Dodo?

Market forces and technology development are converging to portend the unthinkable: olefin production without a steam cracker. The Alternative Feedstock Program at Dow Chemical is reviewing and implementing routes to olefin derivatives that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. This paper will describe these efforts and, in particular, highlight the emergence of bio-based polyethylene made by catalytic dehydration of ethanol to form ethylene. Other routes from coal and natural gas will be reviewed. The portfolio of options will be described. The paper concludes that the extinction of steam crackers is not imminent, but new technologies will find their place. These new technologies will not compete in all niches, but will replace steam cracking in some. This will bring new vibrancy and uncertainty to the production of olefins.