Sulfur emissions industrial oxidation

In the outdoor environment, the high concentrations of sulfur and nitrogen oxides from automotive and industrial emissions result in a corrosion having both soluble and insoluble corrosion products and no pacification. The results are clearly visible on outdoor bronze sculpture (see Airpollution Exhaust CONTROL, automotive Exhaust conthol, industrial). 

In Mexico City, several air quality parameters are measured continuously by an Automated Monitoring Network operated by the Under Secretariat of Ecology. Carbon monoxide, particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and ozone are the contaminants exceeding Air Quality Standards. Emissions produced by 2.7 million vehicles and 35,000 commercial and industrial outfits are not easily dispersed in a Valley located at 2240 m and surrounded by two mountain chains which hinder air circulation. An Integral Program, recently established to alleviate pollution, is briefly described. 

As seen in the above equations, the aqueous oxidation processes convert sulfur in the feed to dissolved sulfate, while arsenic is oxidized and precipitated as ferric arsenate compounds. So, problems of the emission of sulfur and arsenic oxides caused by roasting are avoided in the aqueous oxidation processes. The two different industrial methods which achieve the oxidation reactions are pressure oxidation and biological oxidation. 

The principal cause of acid rain is the combustion of fossil fuels that produce sulfur and nitrogen emissions. The primary sources are electrical power plants, automobiles, and smelters. Power plants produce most of the sulfur emissions and automobiles most of the nitrogen emissions. Other sources of acid rain include nitrogen fertilizers, jet aircraft, and industrial emissions. Just as in our discussion of ozone, numerous reactions are involved in the formation of acid rain. The process can be understood by considering the transformation of sulfur and nitrogen oxides into their respective acidic forms sulfuric acid and nitric acid. Sulfur, present up to a few percent in fuels such as coal, is converted to sulfur dioxide when the fuel is burned. The sulfur dioxide reacts with water to produce sulfurous acid, H,SO ,, that is then oxidized to sulfuric... 

Air pollution occurs when the concentration of natural and/or man-made substances in the atmosphere becomes excessive and the air becomes toxic. Emissions from transportation, industry, and agriculture are man-made sources of air pollution. Primary pollutants are gases, liquids, and particulates dispersed into the atmosphere through either man-made or natural processes. In the United States, the primary pollutants are carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and particulate matter (soot, dust, etc.). Secondary pollutants are derived from primary pollutants that undergo a chemical reaction and become a different type of toxic material. In the United States, secondary pollutants are ozone, photochemical smog, and acid rain. 

Air legislation is targeting emissions from industrial operations, greenhouse gases, lead, motor vehicle emissions, nitrogen oxides, ODS, sulfur dioxide, and suspended particulate matter. Water legislation in the EU is divided into effect- and source-oriented direc-... 

This chapter examines industrial (nonequUibrium) SO2 oxidation and its effect on tail gas SO2 concentrations. It also discusses methods to decrease acid plant sulfur emissions. 

Equilibrium SO2 oxidation is never achieved in an industrial acid plant, resulting in slightly higher than optimum SO2 emissimis. Methods to lower sulfur emissions from the acid plant mainly focus on decreasing SO2 emission and include ... 

Acid precipitation shows a strong geographic dependence, as illustrated in Figure 15.10, representing the pH of precipitation in the continental U.S. The preponderance of acidic rainfall in the northeastern U.S., which also affects southeastern Canada, is obvious. Analyses of the movements of air masses have shown a correlation between acid precipitation and prior movement of an air mass over major sources of anthropogenic sulfur and nitrogen oxides emissions. This is particularly obvious in southern Scandinavia, which receives a heavy burden of air pollution from densely populated, heavily industrialized areas in Europe. 

Particle precursor gases are emitted into the atmosphere either directly by natural and anthropogenic sources or by oxidation processes in the atmosphere. The most prominent precursor gas is probably sulfur dioxide (SO2). It is the precursor for particulate sulfates, such as sulfuric acid (H2SO4) or ammonium sulfate [(NH4)2S04]. Sulfur dioxide is directly emitted by natural sources (e.g., volcano emptions). Anthropogenic sources in industrial regions are mostly associated with combustion processes (e.g., coal combustion). Additional SO2 is derived from oxidation processes of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) over the oceans. Estimations of the global sulfur emissions from these sources are listed in Table 3. 

Modem smelters using good industrial practices are able to achieve the following in terms of pollutant loads (all values are expressed on an annualized basis) hydrogen fluoride, 0.2 to 0.4 kg/t total fluoride, 0.3 to 0.6 kg/t particulates, 1 kg/t sulfur dioxide, 1 kg/t and nitrogen oxides, 0.5 kg/t. CF4 emissions should be less than 0.1 kg/t. 

Emissions monitoring is essential in controlling industrial environments and processes to ensure good air quality standards are maintained. It is also required in order that the various regulations and guidelines related to air quality are met. In addition to gaseous emissions, such as sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, and many others, the emissions of particulate material and heavy metals must also be controlled. 

Public concerns about air quality led to the passage of the Clean Air Act in 1970 to amendments to that act in 1977 and 1990. The 1990 amendments contained seven separate titles covering different regula-toiy programs and include requirements to install more advanced pollution control equipment and make other changes in industrial operations to reduce emissions of air pollutants. The 1990 amendments address sulfur dioxide emissions and acid rain deposition, nitrous oxide emissions, ground-level ozone, carbon monoxide emissions, particulate emissions, tail pipe emissions, evaporative emissions, reformulated gasoline, clean-fueled vehicles and fleets, hazardous air pollutants, solid waste incineration, and accidental chemical releases. 

The byproduct is a stoichiometric amount of 60 wt % H2S04, which is used in the chemical industry. The wastewater (0.3 m3/100 kg active matter), which contains paraffin, oxidation products of the paraffin, alkanesulfonate, and sulfur dioxide, has a chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 1800 mg/L and is readily biodegradable (>95% after 7 days). The sulfur dioxide emission after repeated washing of the off-gas amounts to 0.5 g/100 kg active matter [6]. 

Industry and transport contribute another 1.5 X 1011 kg of the dioxide, of which about 70% comes from oil and coal combustion—mainly in electricity-generating plants. Because, like many other countries, both the United States and Canada have increased restrictions on emissions of sulfur oxides, emissions of S02 into the atmosphere in Canada fell 50% between 1980 and 2000 and in the United States they fell 40% during the same period (see Box 10.1). 

Particles are emitted Into the atmosphere from numerous natural and manmade sources and are also formed upon condensation of gases and vapors. Direct emissions of Suspended Particulate Natter (SPN) arise from a variety of human activities Including combustion. Industrial and agricultural practices the remainder Is formed from gas-particle conversions (chiefly from SOj oxidation to sulfuric acid as sulfate salts). Particles larger than about lOpm In diameter deposit In the vicinity of the sources, but smaller... 

Figure 4-13 shows an example from a three-dimensional model simulation of the global atmospheric sulfur balance (Feichter et al, 1996). The model had a grid resolution of about 500 km in the horizontal and on average 1 km in the vertical. The chemical scheme of the model included emissions of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) from the oceans and SO2 from industrial processes and volcanoes. Atmospheric DMS is oxidized by the hydroxyl radical to form SO2, which, in turn, is further oxidized to sulfuric acid and sulfates by reaction with either hydroxyl radical in the gas phase or with hydrogen peroxide or ozone in cloud droplets. Both SO2 and aerosol sulfate are removed from the atmosphere by dry and wet deposition processes. The reasonable agreement between the simulated and observed wet deposition of sulfate indicates that the most important processes affecting the atmospheric sulfur balance have been adequately treated in the model. 

---