The plant has not reduced the product output under sanctions. On the contrary, there are plans to increase production capacity. 

What happens inside of multi-ton tanks and how isopropyl alcohol is manufactured – the experts of the plant constantly keep an eye on these processes.

As the process is non-stop it is important to control each stage: the slightest change in temperature or pressure can lead to spoilage of product batch – about 170 tons of isopropanol.  Although all parameters are automatically controlled, the human factor plays a big role.

 
“In addition to automatics, we ourselves also take part in the process: we open and close valves when it is necessary; we increase steam consumption and analyze indicators to be sure that everything is fine; quality indicators should be in accordance with GOSTs,” a distilling operator Yulia Smirnova said.

Monitoring is also carried out in the laboratories: not a single gram of product will be shipped unchecked. The quality certificate is issued for a batch of products only after the examination of samples according to 9 parameters. It goes on like this every three or four hours.

The AO Omsky kauchuk launched the production of isopropyl alcohol in January 2021. The product is made from acetone and hydrogen. This is why it doesn’t have strong smell and restrictions on use compared to isopropanol which is made from propylene.

 
IPA from Omsk – as industrialists call it – is especially popular in pharmaceuticals. This is the main component of antiseptics that are widely used during the Pandemic.

IPA is also used in cosmetics and in the production of windscreen washing fluids. Today the AO Omsky kauchuk is the largest manufacturer of isopropyl alcohol in the country. The plant is also one of the main exporters of the product. Thus, out of 13 thousand tons of isopropanol, the Omsk plant supplied 7 thousand tons for foreign companies.

 
In terms of isopropanol production, the Omsk facility has become the fourth largest in the country and the first in terms of the volume of the product manufactured.

In just one year Omsky kauchuk has managed to reduce the share of imported isopropyl alcohol from 60% to 30%. The current task under sanctions is to make Russian companies independent from foreign raw materials. We have resources - so far, the unit's capacity is 85% utilized. Production capacity is planned to be increased to 100% by the end of the year. The main focus is on the quality of the product.

“It is possible to reach 99.96% quality for isopropyl alcohol. I guess that means a lot. Not all foreign equivalent products can compete in this field,” General Director of the AO Omsky kauchuk Sergey Ivanilov said.

The plant intends not only to meet the needs of all Russian companies but to sell the product abroad. Turkey is already cooperating with Omsk. The product samples have been shipped to India, Belarus, Azerbaijan, and China. By the way, in spite of China has no shortage of isopropanol – the country is the largest exporter of the product itself – the high quality product from Omsk is likely to attract potential buyers.

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