【Ten Years of Rapid Development in Chemical Equipment】The world’s first pilot-scale unit for vapor iodine recovery was successfully commissioned between 1682 and 2014

Thread Content

This post was last edited by Desert Fish on 2024-5-10 at 19:33. 2024: Happy May Day – safety first! Let’s give praise and support to the achievements in China’s chemical technology and equipment industry. **********************[A Decade of Progress in Chemical Equipment] – An ongoing update and summary thread; feel free to join the discussions: https://bbs.hcbbs.com/thread-3576046-1-1.html (Source: Haichuan Chemical Forum) ***************** On April 9, 2014, the world’s first pilot-scale unit for gas-phase iodine recovery, built by Wengfu Chemical Company, has been operating steadily for 50 days. This represents another major breakthrough by Wengfu in the field of iodine extraction from phosphate ore, following the success of its liquid-phase iodine recovery technology. Vapor-phase iodine recovery technology not only helps advance the process of managing vapor-phase iodine at Wengfu and improve the overall utilization rate of resources, but it also helps to alleviate the pressure resulting from the shortage of iodine resources in China. “This pilot-scale unit is an expanded version of the pilot-scale gas-phase iodine recovery device that our team at Wengfu developed last year. It is like the devil trapped in a bottle in a fairy tale, effectively ‘capturing’ the iodine resources in the gas phase. ”Lei Xuelian, an associate chief engineer at Wengfu, vividly described the reliability of this gas-phase iodine recovery technology system. Currently, they are conducting an economic analysis and evaluation of the industrialization technology for vapor-phase iodine recovery. It is reported that Wengfu is considering building industrial facilities, which would enable one such facility to recover around 30 tons of iodine per year. 　　The Wengfu phosphate mine boasts reserves of such large scale, excellent quality, and favorable combination conditions, which are rare worldwide. Wengfu phosphate ore is rich in iodine as a by-product; therefore, there is an ample supply of raw materials for extracting iodine from this ore. Extracting iodine from phosphate ore offers advantages in terms of resources and environmental impact compared to extracting it from kelp. In recent years, although Wengfu has achieved success in liquid-phase iodine recovery technology, 40% of the iodine that enters the gas phase remains unutilized. If this iodine is not recovered, it not only wastes resources but also pollutes the environment. To this end, Wengfu established a dedicated R&D project for gas-phase iodine recovery technology. 　　According to Lei Xuelian, a domestic research institution had previously conducted experiments on the development of vapor-phase iodine extraction, but these efforts were unsuccessful due to the difficulty in overcoming the challenges related to the separation of iodine, fluorine, and silica gel in vapor phase. Today, the engineering and technical staff at Wengfu Chemical Company have overcome the challenge of having no prior technical experience to draw on; by finding alternative approaches, they have solved this technical problem and successfully developed a new technology for the recovery of iodine from gas phases. The success of this technology has enhanced Wengfu’s international competitiveness, and it can provide core process package support for Wengfu’s projects in Saudi Arabia, Morocco, and elsewhere. 　　As an important strategic material, iodine is widely used in fields such as medicine, metallurgy, agriculture, dyes, photography, synthetic rubber, national defense, and **industry. Its scarcity has a direct impact on a country’s economy and people’s livelihoods. Iodine is also an essential trace element for the human body; in our country, 350 to 500 tons of iodine need to be added to table salt each year. However, over the past 10 years, the development of the kelp iodine production industry in our country has not been promising. The annual output of crude iodine remains around 150 tons, which is insufficient to meet the needs for iodizing salt; as a result, China’s annual iodine imports account for nearly one-quarter of the world’s total production. The development of gas-phase iodine recovery technologies can help alleviate the pressure caused by the shortage of iodine resources in our country.