Polypropylene (PP) is the high‑volume general‑purpose thermoplastic resin with the broadest application scope, serving trillion‑dollar downstream sectors including automotive lightweighting, home appliance manufacturing, food packaging and thin‑wall injection moulding as well as electrical and electronics. With domestic manufacturing upgrading, market demand for high‑end PP grades featuring high‑impact resistance, high flowability and high crystallinity together with low‑odour performance keeps rising. Located on Donghai Island in Zhanjiang, ZhongKe (Guangdong) Refinery&Petrochemical Co., Ltd. operates modern polypropylene units backed by the complete industrial chain of its large‑scale integrated refining‑petrochemical complex. It fills the supply gap of high‑end polypropylene in South China and delivers stable domestic polyolefin raw‑material support for manufacturing industries in the Guangdong‑Hong Kong‑Macao Greater Bay Area and across China.
As a key integrated refining‑petrochemical base under Sinopec, ZhongKe (Guangdong) Refinery&Petrochemical Co., Ltd. has a refining capacity of 15 million tons per year and ethylene capacity of 800,000 tons per year. Benefiting from its unique “plant right beside port” location, it enjoys superior logistics for raw‑material storage & transportation and finished‑product sea shipment. It is a national‑level green and smart factory. The site is equipped with a 200,000‑ton‑per‑year polypropylene plant adopting the Spherizone multi‑zone gas‑phase polymerization technology. The unit enables flexible grade switching and steadily produces full‑range PP products including homopolymer, random copolymer and impact copolymer. Supported by Sinopec’s self‑developed BSQ‑II series catalysts, precise polymerization control is achieved with high batch‑to‑batch performance consistency, mitigating long‑term reliance on imports for certain high‑end grades.
Process technology underpins product quality. The Spherizone multi‑zone gas‑phase process precisely regulates molecular‑chain structures and ethylene co‑monomer components to strike balanced performance among rigidity, toughness and flowability. It can produce basic grades for general‑purpose fibre drawing and injection moulding, as well as custom high‑performance special grades for automotive, home‑appliance and food‑contact scenarios. Leveraging domestically‑developed catalyst systems, the plant delivers high polymerization activity with strict impurity control for outstanding low‑odour and low‑ash performance. Multiple products have obtained UL certifications to meet access requirements of high‑end supply chains at home and abroad.
ZhongKe polypropylene boasts a rich grade portfolio covering multiple high‑value niche segments. EP648U: A high‑rigidity, high‑impact and high‑flow impact copolymer. As a benchmark domestic material for new‑energy vehicle lightweighting in South China, it fits thin‑wall automotive components. Driven by the thin‑wall lightweight trend for new‑energy auto parts, this grade enjoys robust sales and effectively replaces imported automotive‑grade polypropylene. EP548R: Low‑odour matte impact‑copolymer PP with stable shrinkage and excellent matte finish. Widely used for automotive interior parts, washing‑machine housings and small‑home‑appliance casings, its products are exported to Southeast Asia and other overseas markets. PPH‑MH20: High‑crystallinity homopolymer PP with UL yellow‑card certification. It excels in rigidity, heat resistance and ageing resistance, suitable for high‑end home‑appliance structural parts and rigid daily plastic articles with high moulding efficiency and stable appearance of finished goods. HT9025ZK: High‑flow transparent random‑copolymer PP with good impact resistance. It is applied for food‑contact thin‑wall articles such as food‑storage boxes and drinking cups, cutting processing energy consumption and improving injection‑moulding productivity.
Besides, grades including EP440N, EP332K and PPR‑MT45 target home‑appliance components, logistics packaging boxes and thin‑wall food containers respectively, satisfying diverse processing requirements for general injection moulding, modification compounding and transparent articles.
In terms of material performance, ZhongKe polypropylene series features balanced mechanical properties, good chemical resistance and wide processing windows. Homopolymer grades deliver high rigidity and great heat resistance; impact‑copolymer grades offer favourable low‑temperature toughness and drop‑impact performance; transparent random‑copolymer grades provide high light transmittance and low odour. Compatible with mainstream processing techniques such as injection moulding, extrusion and modification compounding, these materials can be used directly or further toughened, filled and reinforced by modification manufacturers to accommodate varied production conditions of downstream processors.
The automotive industry represents its core growth track. Amid automotive lightweighting, polypropylene gradually replaces metal components. Grades EP648U and EP548R supply OEMs and modification manufacturers for interior & exterior auto parts and boost domestic self‑reliance of automotive materials. In home‑appliance sector, high‑crystallinity low‑odour grades are widely adopted for housings of washing machines, air‑conditioners and small home appliances with strict requirements for appearance, heat resistance and weathering performance. For food packaging, transparent PP serves food‑contact articles such as lunch boxes and food‑storage containers. Its products are also extensively used for logistics turnover boxes, electrical & electronic accessories and household daily goods, serving the huge plastic‑processing industrial cluster across South China.
From the industrial landscape perspective, part of high‑end automotive grades, high‑crystallinity home‑appliance grades and premium transparent polypropylene once relied on overseas imports, bringing long lead‑time and unstable supply‑chain risks. With stable operation of ZhongKe’s polypropylene unit, in‑house propylene feedstock from integrated facilities brings cost advantages. Together with Zhanjiang port logistics strengths, it serves plastic‑processing manufacturers within the Guangdong‑Hong Kong‑Macao Greater Bay Area, other domestic regions and overseas export markets. Digitalised management of the smart factory continuously optimises production stability. Adopting a research‑production‑sales integrated model, ZhongKe iterates grades targeting downstream customer pain points and keeps expanding high‑value‑added markets such as premium automotive, home‑appliance and precision articles.
Looking ahead, domestic manufacturing upgrading, automotive lightweighting and trends towards eco‑friendly thin‑wall packaging will continuously fuel demand for high‑performance polypropylene. ZhongKe (Guangdong) Refinery&Petrochemical Co., Ltd. will keep focusing on developing differentiated high‑end PP grades and enriching its product portfolio. It will further improve the polyolefin supply landscape in South China, cut procurement and logistics costs for downstream enterprises, safeguard the security and self‑reliance of domestic polyolefin industrial chains, and deliver solid domestic raw‑material support for automotive, home‑appliance, packaging, electronics and other industries.
