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Summary
The recovery of waste heat from Aurubis' copper smelting operation in Hamburg is already helping to reduce global carbon emissions and has the potential to provide heat for up to 20,000 homes through the district heating network in Hamburg's HafenCity. The energy for the network comes from waste heat that Aurubis recovers from their sulphuric acid plant, using unique Alfa Laval plate heat exchanger technology.Abstract
Recovering industrial waste heat is one of the most effective ways to improve energy efficiency on a global scale. By recovering energy that would otherwise be lost to the atmosphere or water and reusing it for other purposes, we can greatly reduce fuel consumption compared with today’s levels. As a result, we can also drastically reduce global carbon emissions. Aurubis has taken this approach to improve sustainability in one of their smelters. Partnering with the German energy supplier enercity Aktiengesellschaft, the multimetal company has become the driving force behind a district heating network that serves Hamburg’s HafenCity neighbourhood. The energy for the network comes from waste heat that Aurubis recovers from their nearby sulphuric acid plant, using unique Alfa Laval plate heat exchanger technology that is designed to resist corrosion and withstand the high pressure and extreme heat associated with the process.Summary
Aged sulphur products can be friable and fragile, which can lead to sulphur dust during handling. Because sulphur dust can lead to dust explosions and excessive wet sulphur contact corrosion, shipping and handling specifications for the safest products are used by producers, shippers and consumers to limit dangerous incidents. Metastable polymeric sulphur in the solid product limits friability and is rarely cited as a measured quantity within sulphur specifications, but often discussed when explaining best handling and forming practices. In this article, ASRL discusses why sulphur tends to be friable and explores several measurements cited in many specification documents, with the purpose of focusing on several modern solid forms. In addition, the measurement of total and extraneous water is explored.Abstract
Commercially produced sulphur is available in the form of pastilles, granules or prills. To ensure production of a high-quality formed product, several properties are of interest to producers and consumers, such as H2S content, friability (fragility), water content, porosity, etc. As discussed by many authors, sulphur’s properties change during the initial forming of the product, aging of the product and might differ depending on the use of degassed or non-degassed liquid sulphur. With controlled batches of commercial air prills, commercial granules, commercial pastilles, lab formed water prills, and lab formed pastilles (Fig. 1), ASRL has been following several properties during aging to improve the understanding of optimum handling and forming practices.Summary
Sulphur dust is one of the greatest hazards when producing and handling solid sulphur, and methods for its suppression are vitally important to prevent fire and explosion.Abstract
While sulphur is a fairly benign substance in terms of toxicity and is a solid at room temperature and pressure, making handling fairly easy, it has various characteristics which can be problematical if not looked after. As is detailed in the article elsewhere in this issue (pages 44-53), it is very brittle and friable, which means that rough handling can cause it to break into progressively smaller pieces.Summary
The centre of gravity of the phosphate industry continues to shift, with Chinese exports less important, and fresh demand coming from India and Brazil.Abstract
The phosphate market, which remains the mainstay of industrial sulphuric acid demand, has continued to see-saw over the past few years, hit first by covid and the attendant shutdowns, and then, when the global economy was beginning to recover, by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the attendant sanctions which restricted availability from key suppliers like Russia and Belarus.Summary
The 2023 Middle East Sulphur Conference (MEScon 2023) was the biggest sulphur event in the region to date with over 650 attendees representing 23 countries from across the sour gas and sulphur value chain. More than a conference, this annual event offers conversation, collaboration and community, with leaders and experts from across the industry sharing knowledge, best practice and predictions for the future of sulphur.Abstract
The Middle East Sulphur Conference (MEScon) organised by CRU and UniverSUL Consulting, took place 15-18 May at the Conrad Abu Dhabi Etihad Towers in Abu Dhabi. On Day 1, three pre-conference workshops, hosted separately by BASF, BR&E, and Comprimo, took place at the conference hotel as well as a number of technical showcase presentations. Keywords: conference report, Middle East Sulphur Conference, MEScon, Abu Dhabi, sulphur event, sulphur value chain, energy transition, net zero, sulphur recovery, sour gas, SO2 emission targets, ADNOC, Saudi Aramco, CRU, UniverSUL ConsultingSummary
There is a growing skills gap in the sulphur industry due to the changing nature of the workforce. The traditional ways of doing things are no longer working effectively. Knowledge is lost with retiring subject matter experts (SMEs) and other experienced operations staff leaving a reducing pool of SMEs. In this article a case study reviews how knowledge automation solved the skills gap in a sulphur recovery unit at a major US refinery. Christian McDermott (Voovio), Angie Slavens (UniverSUL Consulting) and Elmo Nasato (Nasato Consulting).Abstract
According to Deloitte’s and The Manufacturing Institute’s report on the state of the industrial workforce, attracting and retaining a quality workforce is a top focus for 83% of manufacturers surveyed. This perfectly aligns with what is heard across plants in the US and abroad: the loss of experienced people in operating facilities. Keywords: knowledge automation, subject matter experts, SMEs, skills gap, sulphur recovery unit, refinery, digital replica, simulator, operator training, VoovioSummary
Debopam Chaudhuri of Fluor Daniel India Pvt Ltd and Michiel Baerends of Fluor B.V. Netherlands investigate how SO2 impacts the Claus furnace temperature in an SRU and the ways to mitigate it. This article studies the extent of quenching experienced in the Claus furnace with varying amounts of SO2 in the Claus feed. A case study is presented based on real operating data of a refinery Claus plant with a feed gas cocktail that includes substantial SO2 recovered from a regenerative flue gas desulphurisation unit.Abstract
The classical feed gas streams to a sulphur recovery unit (SRU), originating from the amine regeneration and the sour water stripping units, contain varying amounts of H2S as the sulphur source. The H2S in the acid gas streams is captured as elemental sulphur utilising the modified Claus reactions. The process involves burning the acid feed gas with a sub-stoichiometric amount of air – just enough to combust only a third of the H2S to SO2. The SO2 thus formed reacts with the unconverted H2S to form sulphur.Summary
In 2019 Topsoe launched its ClearView™ technology for WSA and SNOx sulphuric acid plants. ClearView™ is a revolutionary process health monitoring software solution to help sulphuric acid plant operators ensure plants run better, more stable and with less downtime. Now, three years later, ClearView™ has been successfully implemented at two WSA plants and several other chemical plants of Topsoe's design, with many others in the pipeline. This article focuses on the results and learnings from the first implementation of ClearView™ at a new WSA plant at Anglo American Platinum's Polokwane smelter in South Africa. M. Granroth, R. Sverdrup (Topsoe A/S), M. Ndlovu, R. Pinto, (Anglo American), and D. Dippenaar (Anglo American Platinum)Abstract
Nowadays, the transformation of all industries through digitalisation, big data, machine learning, and the like has become an almost daily talking point. Topsoe’s long history of service to its customers over decades means that it is continuously involved in the real-life challenges faced by plant operators. Keywords: digital tools, WSA plant, ClearView, smelter, data analytics, connected services, cloud-based system, Polokwane smelter, South Africa, commissioning, pandemic, start-up, hydraulic monitoring, dew point monitoring, shutdown, optimising performance, troubleshooting, Topsoe, Anglo American