Refineries, sulfur recovery

Table I presents a refinery sulfur recovery capacity forecast made by the National Petroleum Council (NPC). The top portion of the table represents the initial conditions based on current crude input and refinery product slates the bottom indicates additional capacity required for each of three, non-additive, scenarios. As the NPC study shows that sulfur production, as a percent of capacity, in 1982 is expected to be 60% in district I, 54% in district II, 71% in district III, 72% in district IV, and 49% in district V...

Not too long ago, the function of a refinery sulfur recovery unit was to produce a (ow-value byproduct. Today, sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions must be strictly controlled. Pollution abatement has become as important as profitability, and effective sulfur plant troubleshooting is a vital component in keeping a refinery onstream. 

Standards for Performance for New Stationary Sources Petroleum Refinery Sulfur Recovery Plants." Federal Renter, 40 CFR Part 60, Vol. 41, No. 193, October 4, 1976, pp. 43-866-43,874. 

Petroleum-Refinery Sulfur Recovery Plants Qaus Plant oxidation or reduction wife incineration reduction without incineration 0.025% SO2 by vol dry at 0% excess air 0.030% by vol reduced snlfur compounds dry at 0% excess air and 0.0010% by vol H2S dry at 0% excess air... 

Purification of refinery gases by elimination of hydrogen sulfide as well as Claus units for sulfur recovery began to make their appearance. 

Hydrogen sulfide Refinery gases, crude oil, sulfur recovery, various chemical industries using sulfur compounds Petroleum and chemicals Kraft pulping process Foul odor of rotten eggs irritating to eyes and respiratory tract darkening exterior paint... 

Currently, sulfur is mainly produced by the partial oxidation of hydrogen sulfide through the Claus process. The major sources of hydrogen sulfide are natural gas and petroleum refinery streams treatment operations. It has been estimated that 90-95% of the world s recovered sulfur is produced through the Claus process. Typical sulfur recovery ranges from 90% for a lean acid gas feed to 97% for a rich acid gas feed. ... 

Swain, E. Coke, Sulfur Recovery from U.S. Refineries Continues to Increase. Oil Gas Journal, January 2, 1995. 

The generation of the required reducing gas is very expensive because natural gas or low sulfur oil are used. Both of these fuels are in short supply and do not offer long-term solutions to the problem. However, in certain industrial processes, like petroleum refineries, a reducing gas could be readily available. Also, if a Claus sulfur recovery plant existed on-site, the concentrated SO2 stream could be sent to the Claus plant where it would mix with the H2S containing gas streams. Final adjustment of the H2S S02 ratio would be necessary. If the overall sulfur balance were favorable, the need for a reducing gas could be avoided. Either of these options could make the use of a recovery process economically attractive for industrial applications. 

Atmospheric and vacuum distillation units (Figures 4.3 and 4.4) are closed processes, and exposures are expected to be minimal. Both atmospheric distillation units and vacuum distillation units produce refinery fuel gas streams containing a mixture of light hydrocarbons, hydrogen sulfide, and ammonia. These streams are processed through gas treatment and sulfur recovery units to recover fuel gas and sulfur. Sulfur recovery creates emissions of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, sulfur oxides, and nitrogen oxides. 

The off-gas stream from hydrotreating is usually very rich in hydrogen sulfide and light fuel gas. This gas is usually sent to a sour gas treatment and sulfur recovery unit along with other refinery sour gases. 

The H2S formed exits the FCCU in the dry gas and is removed downstream in the sulfur recovery unit. The increase in H2S production, 5-20%, can typically be managed within a refinery s operations (Figure 16.2). A different mechanism of SO uptake has been presented by Magnabosco [5],... 

Historical data were obtained on U.S. refinery operations and the production of sulfur from U.S. refineries from 1971-1977. A two-parameter model was developed correlating past levels of sulfur recovery with the quality and rate of crude processed and the qualities and amounts of end products. An overall correlation coefficient of 0.91 was obtained. 

JJ SULFUR RECOVERY FROM REFINERY PROCESS EMISSIONS... 

National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Primary Copper Smelting National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Secondary Aluminum Production National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Primary Lead Smelting National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Petroleum Refineries Catalytic Cracking Units, Catalytic Reforming Units, and Sulfur Recovery Units... 

Pollutants for Petroleum Refineries Catalytic Cracking Units, Catalytic Reforming Units, and Sulfur Recovery Units... 

Tn the last several years, much of the work in sulfur oxide emission - control has been aimed at emissions from power plant stacks. However, there are many other stationary sources of sulfur emissions including non-ferrous smelters, sulfuric acid plants, and petroleum refineries. The papers in this collection are concerned with these other sources of sulfur-bearing off-gases. This volume is intended to be a consolidated reference source for those interested in the latest sulfur recovery methods. 

Figure 8. Total sulfur recovery using IFP-150 process in a refinery...

Determination of total fluoride emissions from stationary sources—SPADNS zirconium lake method Determination of total fluoride emissions from stationary sources—specific ion electrode method Determination of fluoride emissions from potroom roof monitors for primary aluminum plants Determination of total fluoride emissions from selected sources at primary aluminum production facflities Determination of hydrogen sulfide, carbonyl sulfide, and carbon disulfide emissions from stationary sources Determination of total reduced sulfur emissions from sulfur recovery plants in petroleum refineries Semicontinuous determination of sulfur emissions from stationary sources Determination of total reduced sulfur emissions from stationary sources (impinger technique)... 

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