As of June 2, a 10,000-cubic-meter aviation kerosene storage tank at Urumqi Petrochemical had been in operation for 22 days, having stored a cumulative total of 12,126 cubic meters of fuel. The official commissioning of this tank has effectively boosted the company's aviation kerosene storage capacity. It has reduced the frequency of production adjustments necessitated by storage constraints—thereby lowering operational risks—while simultaneously enhancing tank turnover efficiency and the potential for integrated production, sales, and inventory management.
The retrofit project to adapt the tank for aviation kerosene took 40 days to complete, meeting high standards regarding floating roof installation, safety upgrades, and cleanliness control.
Urumqi serves as a key node city in the core region of the "Belt and Road Initiative." In recent years, the capacity and status of Urumqi's aviation hub have risen steadily, driving significant growth in the demand for high-quality aviation kerosene. As a major refining and chemical enterprise in Northwest China, Urumqi Petrochemical is tasked with ensuring the supply of aviation kerosene to Urumqi Tianshan International Airport as well as regional airports in Hami, Qitai, and Korla. Although the company's aviation kerosene output has steadily increased, limited existing storage capacity and a shortage of dedicated tanks had previously constrained production output and the company's ability to generate value.
Aviation kerosene quality is critical to flight safety; standard gasoline storage tanks fail to meet the specific requirements for aviation kerosene regarding cleanliness, airtightness, and fire safety facilities. To address this, the company decided to add 10,000 cubic meters of storage capacity by professionally retrofitting an existing gasoline tank (Tank No. 222), thereby fortifying the first line of defense for product quality at the hardware level.
The retrofit of Tank No. 222 involved multiple high-risk operations, including work in confined spaces, hot work (cutting and welding), and high-altitude lifting. Management personnel from the Storage and Transportation Department supervised specific zones with clearly defined responsibilities, while construction crews entered the site in an orderly, discipline-specific manner to ensure every step of the process proceeded according to standards. Comprehensive measures were taken to eliminate potential hazards in the storage tank's auxiliary facilities—such as the fire-fighting foam lines and tank-base valves—adhering to the principle of "upgrading one area to improve the entire system." This addressed operational risks at the source—risks that could have arisen from converting the tank from gasoline to aviation kerosene service—ensuring the tank not only has the necessary capacity but also guarantees safe storage and stable supply.
Aviation kerosene storage tanks demand exceptional cleanliness. Han Changzhong, an equipment administrator in the Storage and Transportation Department, noted, "There is no such thing as a 99-point score for aviation kerosene quality; it must be 100 points. A single drop of impurity or a single equipment failure could compromise flight safety." Following the upgrade, Urumqi Petrochemical conducted rigorous acceptance inspections covering equipment, process operations, and safety standards. Inspectors, clad in clean protective gear, examined the tank walls, floating roof, and tank bottom one by one; white gloves wiped across any surface remained spotless. In the strictest test—the "dough adhesion check"—dough was pressed into the gaps of the floating roof, and it showed no discoloration whatsoever. Subsequently, the tank passed dual quality certifications from both military and civil aviation authorities and cleared the cleaning acceptance inspection on the first attempt, demonstrating that the internal cleanliness met the highest standards for aviation kerosene storage.
