Ammonia plant

Fig. 4. Pipeline systems of transport for anhydrous ammonia within the United States (7), where represents an ammonia plant location ...

Since 1960, about 95% of the synthetic ammonia made in the United States has been made from natural gas worldwide the proportion is about 85%. Most of the balance is made from naphtha and other petroleum Hquids. Relatively small amounts of ammonia are made from hydrogen recovered from coke oven and refinery gases, from electrolysis of salt solutions, eg, caustic chlorine production, and by electrolysis of water. In addition there are about 20 ammonia plants worldwide that use coal as a hydrogen source. 

Coal is expected to be the best domestic feedstock alternative to natural gas. Although coal-based ammonia plants have been built elsewhere, there is no such plant in the United States. Pilot-scale projects have demonstrated effective ammonia-from-coal technology (102). The cost of ammonia production can be anticipated to increase, lea ding to increases in the cost of producing nitrogen fertilizers. 

Reciprocating Compressors. Prior to 1895, when Linde developed his air Hquefaction apparatus, none of the chemical processes used industrially required pressures much in excess of I MPa (145 psi) and the need for a continuous supply of air at 20 MPa provided the impetus for the development of reciprocating compressors. The introduction of ammonia, methanol, and urea processes in the early part of the twentieth century, and the need to take advantage of the economy of scale in ammonia plants, led to a threefold increase in the power required for compression from 1920 to 1940. The development of reciprocating compressors was not easy Htfle was known about the effects of cycles of fluctuating pressure on the behavior of the... 

There has been an increasing interest in utilising off-gas technology to produce ammonia. A number of ammonia plants have been built that use methanol plant purge gas, which consists typically of 80% hydrogen. A 1250 t/d methanol plant can supply a sufficient amount of purge gas to produce 544 t/d of ammonia. The purge gas is first subjected to a number of purification steps prior to the ammonia synthesis. 

High temperature steam reforming of natural gas accounts for 97% of the hydrogen used for ammonia synthesis in the United States. Hydrogen requirement for ammonia synthesis is about 336 m /t of ammonia produced for a typical 1000 t/d ammonia plant. The near-term demand for ammonia remains stagnant. Methanol production requires 560 m of hydrogen for each ton produced, based on a 2500-t/d methanol plant. Methanol demand is expected to increase in response to an increased use of the fuel—oxygenate methyl /-butyl ether (MTBE). 

In 1974 a 1000 t/d ammonia plant went into operation near Johaimesburg, South Africa. The lignitic (subbituminous) coal used there contains about 14% ash, 36% volatile matter, and 1% sulfur. The plant has six Koppers-Totzek low pressure, high temperature gasifiers. Refrigerated methanol (—38° C, 3.0 MPa (30 atm)) is used to remove H2S. A 58% CO mixture reacts with steam over an iron catalyst to produce H2. The carbon dioxide is removed with methanol (at —58° C and 5.2 MPa (51 atm)). Ammonia synthesis is carried out at ca 22 MPa (220 atm) (53) (see Ammonia). 

E. Supp and A. T. Weschler, "Conversion of Ammonia Plants to Methanol Production using Lurgi s Combined Reforming Technology", HTChE 1992 SpringMeeting, New Orleans. 

Extensive work has been done on corrosion inhibitors (140), activated carbon use (141—144), multiple absorption zones and packed columns (145,146), and selective absorption and desorption of gas components (147,148). Alkan olamines can also be used for acid gas removal in ammonia plants (149). 

Of the raw material hydrogen sources—natural gas, coal, and petroleum fractions—natural gas is the most often employed in ammonia plants in the 1990s and steam reforming is by far the most often used process. Partial oxidation processes are utilized where steam-reformable feeds are not available or in special situations where local conditions exist to provide favorable economics. Table 5 fists the contribution of the various feedstocks to world ammonia... 

Steam-Reforming Natural Gas. Natural gas is the single most common raw material for the manufacture of ammonia. A typical flow sheet for a high capacity single-train ammonia plant is iadicated ia Figure 12. The important process steps are feedstock purification, primary and secondary reforming, shift conversion, carbon dioxide removal, synthesis gas purification, ammonia synthesis, and recovery. 

A.lkanolamine Process. Carbon dioxide is an acidic gas that reacts reversibly with aqueous alkaline solution to form a carbonate adduct. This adduct decomposes upon the addition of low level heat faciUtating CO2 removal. An aqueous solution of 15—20 wt % monoethanolamine (MEA) was the standard method for removing CO2 in early ammonia plants. 

The choice of a specific CO2 removal system depends on the overall ammonia plant design and process integration. Important considerations include CO2 sHp required, CO2 partial pressure in the synthesis gas, presence or lack of sulfur, process energy demands, investment cost, availabiUty of solvent, and CO2 recovery requirements. Carbon dioxide is normally recovered for use in the manufacture of urea, in the carbonated beverage industry, or for enhanced oil recovery by miscible flooding. 

Dehydration. Use of molecular sieve driers for final clean-up of the carbon oxides and water in the synthesis gas to less than 1 ppm levels has gained prominence in low energy ammonia plant designs. The sieves are usually located at the interstage of the synthesis gas compressor to reduce volume requirements. The purified make-up gas can then be combined with the recycle and routed direcdy to the converter. 

The Gulf Central Pipeline system (78) contains 3220 km of 152 mm, 203 mm, and 254 mm pipe and has a pumping capacity of 2545 metric tons per day and supporting terminal storage fackities. The Tampa Bay Pipeline network services several ammonia plants along a 133 km route. 

Whereas the manufacturing cost is strongly influenced by energy prices, cost of money, and capital investment, ammonia selling prices are usually deterrnined by supply and demand. Therefore, the profitabiUty of ammonia plants is deterrnined by the margin between cost of production and ammonia price. 

Ammonia and nitric acid are the two basic ingredients in the manufacture of ammonium nitrate. In addition to consuming ammonia directly, the manufacture of ammonium nitrate consumes ammonia by way of nitric acid production. The largest single use of nitric acid is that of ammonium nitrate production (see Ammonium compounds). Urea (qv) is manufactured by reacting ammonia and carbon dioxide. Urea manufacturing faciHties are often located close to ammonia plants. 

W. Turner, "Ten Years of Single Train Ammonia Plants," NMPO 74, ICI Operating Symposium, BiUingham, UK, 1974. 

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