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Summary
CRU's Sulphur + Sulphuric Acid 2023 Conference and Exhibition takes place at the Sheraton New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, 6-8 November. Take part in this leading annual forum for the global sulphur and sulphuric acid community to learn, connect and do business. Hear from industry leaders and subject experts from around world and across the industry.Abstract
The 39th Sulphur + Sulphuric Acid 2023 Conference and Exhibition returns this year to the history-rich and fun-filled city of New Orleans. For over 35 years this event has been the premier networking and professional development event for those involved in the production, consumption and trade of sulphur and sulphuric acid. Keywords: Sulphur + Sulphuric Acid 2023, conference, exhibition, New Orleans, preview, technical programme, commercial agenda, troubleshooting clinic, CRUSummary
TarT technology, one of 8 Rivers' decarbonisation technologies, shows promise as an economical, efficient, sour gas sweetening process with near-zero carbon dioxide emissions, and may be key to unlocking access to the world's sour gas reserves.Abstract
Gigaton-scale, affordable, and decarbonised solutions are needed to support the world’s growing energy demand while facing our climate crisis. To avert the climate crisis, technologies that can meet the scale and access needs while averting billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) not thousands, will create a key bridge to the energy transition. Keywords: decarbonisation, sour gas reserves, sour gas sweetening, near-zero carbon dioxide emissions, natural gas, shale, sour gas processing, carbon capture, natural gas pricing, emissions, sulphur, TarT technology, cryogenic extractive distillation systems, 8 RiversSummary
Comprimo and Ametek now offer the Analyser Air Control Technology (2ACT) Solution to the industry in which the information for the SRU air control is available 6-7 minutes earlier with the installation of an acid gas feed analyser-based feed forward control. This improvement to conventional SRU combustion air control systems enables operating companies to control their assets closer to design capacity at higher recovery efficiency and with fewer unscheduled outages. Marco van Son, Gerton Molenaar and Ines Hernandez-Virla (Comprimo, part of Worley)Abstract
Worldwide, there are more than 2,500 individual sulphur recovery units (SRUs) installed, predominantly at refineries and natural gas processing facilities. Given the stoichiometric nature of the H2S conversion to elemental sulphur in every SRU, the precise and quick control of the combustion air to the main burner is key to maintaining high sulphur recovery efficiencies (SRE) and low SO2 emissions. This is particularly challenging when the compositions of the acid gases feeding the SRU changes, as it can lead to increased SO2 emissions and negatively impact refinery/gas plant throughput. Especially in refineries dealing with two acid gas streams, amine acid gas (AAG) and sour water acid gas (SWAG), with the SWAG typically experiencing more hydrocarbon carry-over events, the impact can be more pronounced. Keywords: sulphur recovery unit, SRU, process control, SRU air control, acid gas feed analyser, combustion air control system, Advanced Burner Control, ABC, Analyser Air Control Technology, 2ACT Solution, IPS-4 UV/IR analyser, field results, SUPERCLAUS, EUROCLAUS, CBA, upsets, hydrocarbon carryover, AAG feed concentration, SWAG feed concentration, Comprimo, AmetekSummary
In this case study Johannes Derfler of AGRU Kunststofftechnik reports on how a new condenser design, engineered by OMV and INWA AG using PFA sheets from AGRU, was implemented at OMV refinery in Austria to address maintenance problems due to corrosion of the wet sulphuric acid (WSA) condensers and the follow-up units. As a result of the renovation, maintenance costs have been cut in half, while both maintenance intervals and overall operational safety has increased.Abstract
OMV, the largest industrial company in Austria refines fuel products and petrochemicals at its site in Schwechat Austria. In the refining process, crude oil and natural gas are processed into high-quality fuels, oils and other special products such as paraffin, heating oil, bitumen, sulphur and sulphuric acid. The aim of all these processing steps is to achieve a high added value product from the raw material, to work economically as a company, all while operating to sustainably protect dwindling resources and the environment. In the end, all the residual products from the processes are fed into a combined heat power plant to produce steam, electricity, district heating and other products through combustion energy. A downstream flue gas cleaning system (SNOx) cleans the flue gases and allows the burning of high-sulphur fuels in the power plant. Due to the high sulphur content in the fuels, SO2 is produced during combustion which is then used for the production of concentrated sulphuric acid. Sulphuric acid is the most commonly used acid in the world, and there is a global interest in this product as it is essential for a variety of applications. As a result, a contaminated flue gas is turned into clean exhaust air and a saleable industrial product. Keywords: sulphuric acid production, wet sulphuric acid, WSA, condenser design, lining system, SNOx plant, PFA, PFA sheets, PFA fixed point lining, flue gas ducts, FRP, dual laminate, AGRU Kunststofftechnik, OMV refinery, INWASummary
With the aid of a rigorous kinetic model for TGU hydrogenation reactors, incorporating catalyst deactivation mechanisms, designers and operators can forecast the life expectancy of reactor catalyst beds. Michael A. Huffmaster (Consultant), Prashanth Chandran, Nathan A. Hatcher, Daryl R. Jensen (Optimized Gas Treating, Inc.)Abstract
Catalyst deactivation is the loss over time of catalytic activity and/or selectivity. It is a problem of great and continuing concern in the practice of industrial catalytic processes. Costs to industry for catalyst replacement and process shutdowns total billions of dollars per year, and in sulphur recovery, TGU catalyst expenses account for at least $50 million per year plus the cost of unloading and loading. This does not include lost profit from downtime for unplanned outages, which can exceed $1 million per day at a sulphur constrained facility. Keywords: Claus tail gas treating, catalyst, poisoning, deactivation, kinetic model, TGU, hydrogenation reactor, catalyst deactivation mechanisms, catalyst life expectancy, hydrothermal aging, thermal degradation, sintering, sulphur condensation, fouling, coking, sooting, sulphation, Carsul, Optimized Gas TreatingSummary
The possible failure of refractory in a Claus unit is a concern to both licensors and operators of Claus units. Bob Poteet of WIKA discusses a novel and easy way to monitor the shell temperature of the Claus thermal reactor using proven technology and highlights the benefits a purge-less thermocouple system for high temperature measurement.Abstract
For many operators of sulphur recovery units (SRUs), the detection of refractory problems in the Claus thermal reactor is a concern. If the refractory starts to fail, then you can find yourself in a position where the hot gases hit the carbon steel shell and damage or lead to failure of the wall of the reactor. Many ways to detect this have been tried but all have had limitations. Some have tried thermal imaging, but then the problem with rain shields, cowlings and insulation can be a real barrier. Keywords: Claus thermal reactor, shell temperature, monitoring, refractory failure, purge-less thermocouple system, purge, Calitum, temperature measurement, WIKASummary
A new burner design for the combustion of natural gas with either combustion air or pure oxygen as the oxidiser has been developed by CS Combustion Solutions. The new Oxijet®-Burner has been designed to perform both start-up and main operation functions with one burner. The key objectives, challenges, and burner design considerations are discussed.Abstract
The background to the development of the new Oxijet®-Burner started with a request for the supply of natural gas burners for a new greenfield spent acid regeneration plant for both the start-up process and the main operation. However, the main operation of this plant was to be designed as a pure oxygen firing case to increase the efficiency of the combustion process. Keywords: spent acid regeneration, burner design, CFD analysis, Oxijet®-Burner, start-up, combustion, oxidiser CS Combustion Solutions