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The economic performance of China’s nitric acid industry is good. Author/Source: Sinochem New Network. Date: October 20, 2021. Clicks: 11. On October 20, 2021, the meeting for the nitric acid industry and the meeting related to calcium-magnesium nitrate fertilizers were held in Tianjin. Gu Zongqin, president of the China Nitrogen Fertilizer Industry Association, attended the meetings and delivered an important speech. He noted that since 2020, the nitric acid industry has strived to overcome the adverse effects brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, made every effort to maintain production, actively carried out safety improvements, and expanded demand from downstream sectors, resulting in a gradual improvement in the operational conditions of these enterprises. Significant improvements have been achieved in the optimization of the production capacity structure. Gu Zongqin noted that over the past few years, significant progress has been made in reducing capacity in China’s nitric acid industry; between 2015 and 2020, a total of 2.53 million tons per year and 2.75 million tons per year of nitric acid production capacity were phased out respectively. In 2020, the industry’s production capacity began to recover from its previous decline; the production capacity for nitric acid and ** was 19.71 million tons per year and 10.71 million tons per year respectively, representing growth rates of 4.0% and 2.2% on a year-on-year basis. The capacity structure of the industry has been significantly improved. In 2020, outdated production methods such as those using atmospheric pressure, high pressure, or combined processes accounted for only 1.7% of the nitric acid production capacity; the double-pressure process accounted for 96.4%, while medium-pressure and single-pressure processes together accounted for 1.9% ； *All atmospheric-pressure neutralization units in the AO acid and AN industry have been shut down; pressurized neutralization and tubular reactor methods account for 100% of production capacity. The scale of the industry is becoming more reasonable. Gu Zongqin pointed out that with the promotion and application of domestic technologies, the scale of nitric acid industry facilities has become more reasonable. Following the commissioning of the two domestically produced 360,000-ton/year nitric acid plants built by Wanhua Chemical and Chongqing Huafeng, Shanggu has completed the design for a 450,000-ton/year combined unit, while a 600,000-ton/year unit is also under development. To meet the demands of small and medium-sized enterprises for nitrate and nitric acid-based fertilizers, medium-pressure and single-pressure plants with a capacity of 50,000 to 150,000 tons per year have also been rapidly adopted; 7 such plants are currently in operation, giving a total production capacity of 700,000 tons per year. According to statistics from the China Nitrogen Fertilizer Industry Association, as of 2020, there were 3 nitric acid production facilities with a capacity of 360,000 tons per year, accounting for 5.5% of the total production capacity ； 29 sets of plants with a capacity of 270,000 tons per year, accounting for 39.7% of the total capacity ； 50 units with a capacity of 150,000–270,000 tons per year, accounting for 38.3% of the total capacity ； There are 33 units with a capacity of less than 150,000 tons per year, accounting for 16.5% of the total production capacity. The adjustment of the product structure has yielded significant results. **The latest joint notice issued by five ministries and commissions, including the Ministry of Emergency Management, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the Ministry of Public Security, titled \"Notice on Further Strengthening the Safety Management of Nitric Acid,\" stipulates that solid nitric acid production facilities should be equipped with facilities for producing nitro-compounded fertilizers and nitric acid solutions, or other systems for distributing production capacity, in order to match their production capacity. To meet the new requirements for safety management, *ao acid manufacturers are actively adjusting their product portfolio and enhancing the processing capacity for downstream products derived from *ao acid. In 2020, the production volume of *ao acid an solutions reached 1.816 million tons, a 5% increase compared to the previous year, accounting for 40% of the total industrial *ao acid an production. In addition, nitric acid-based enterprises are striving to develop various nitrate-based fertilizer products such as nitro-compounded fertilizers, calcium nitrate, calcium magnesium nitrate, potassium nitrate, ammonium nitrosulfate, and phosphatic fertilizers containing nitrate; the total volume of these nitrate-based fertilizers is increasing year by year. In 2020, the production of ternary nitrate compound fertilizers was 3.149 million tons (produced using in-house nitric acid plants), representing a 5% increase compared to the previous year; the production of calcium nitrate was 1.86 million tons, calcium nitrite was 80,000 tons, and magnesium nitrate was 120,000 tons. QQ Screenshot 20211020152734.jpg Positive progress has been made in expanding the industrial chain. Gu Zongqin believes that the downstream demand for nitric acid has seen new expansion, providing new impetus for the development of this industry. Sichuan Shunying Power Battery Materials Co., Ltd. has successfully achieved industrial production using the technology developed by the company for extracting rare metals from laterite nickel ore using nitric acid instead of sulfuric acid. This technology allows nitric acid to be recycled, which reduces processing costs and offers great potential for wider application. China’s first domestically produced nitric acid-based phosphate fertilizer plant was put into operation in Batian, Guizhou, in 2015; after reaching full production capacity in 2018, it has been operating steadily, with its technology reaching international advanced levels. Phosphoric acid-based fertilizers are efficient and environmentally friendly; they do not produce phosphogypsum, enabling comprehensive utilization of resources, and represent an important option for fertilizer companies to adjust their product portfolios ； Electronic-grade nitric acid is a type of ultra-pure reagent, and its demand in the field of integrated circuits is increasing year by year. Recently, there has been a clear trend among some companies to build new or expand existing production facilities for electronic-grade nitric acid. Achievements in technological innovation are outstanding. Gu Zongqin pointed out that continuous advancements are being made in technological innovation within the nitric acid industry. Technologies and equipment such as the retrofitting technology for traditional two-pressure nitric acid production plants, energy-saving upgrades for ammonia oxidation furnaces, the conversion of steam-driven systems to electric ones in nitric acid production units, single-pressure technology for producing dilute nitric acid, wastewater treatment technologies for nitric acid production plants, processes for recovering acids from NOx-containing gases, membrane separation techniques for treating nitric acid and nitrogen oxide wastewater, technologies for reducing nitrogen oxide emissions, 450,000 tons per year capacity nitric acid production units, and all-medium pressure nitric acid production units have all been adopted and put into use. It is worth noting that on August 7 this year, China’s first project to convert the turbine in a 270,000-ton/year nitric acid production unit into an electric motor was successfully commissioned in Yongchang, Henan. This project not only solves the issue of coal supply for coal-fired boilers but also increases the amount of steam that can be supplied externally; the steam output increased from 12–14 tons per hour to 46–48 tons per hour, resulting in a significant reduction in the overall energy consumption of the facility. Market prices continue to rise driven by raw materials. Since the beginning of this year, raw material prices have risen sharply; coal prices have increased by 1-2 times compared to the previous year, or even more. Entering September, in an effort to secure coal for power generation and heating, fertilizer manufacturers faced difficulties in obtaining coal supplies. The supply of raw coal for ammonia synthesis plants was strained, forcing them to reduce production or shut down. Most of these companies had stockpiles of raw coal that would last less than a week, which severely impacted their production activities. As of September, the price of bituminous coal used in ammonia synthesis at the factory gate was 1,627 yuan per ton, up by 948 yuan per ton compared to the previous year ； The ex-plant price of liquid ammonia is 3,780 yuan per ton, up by 1,270 yuan per ton compared to the previous year. Rising costs have driven up the price of *ao acid an; from January to August, the average ex-factory price of porous *ao acid an was 2,089 yuan per ton, representing a 17.6% increase on a year-on-year basis ； The average ex-factory price of industrial phosphoric acid was 2,041 yuan per ton, representing a 15.3% increase on a year-on-year basis ； The average ex-plant price of the liquid is 2,036 yuan per ton, representing a 14.6% increase compared to the previous year. Security control has been strengthened and upgraded. Gu Zongqin pointed out that Document No. 52 issued by the State Council in 2002 marked an important turning point in the safety management of the nitric acid industry. Subsequently, **the relevant departments successively introduced corresponding management policies to strengthen the safety control of *ao acid an year by year. Especially after the Beirut explosion last year, **additional measures were taken to strengthen the management of safety risks in all aspects related to the production, storage, sales, use, and transportation of ao acid an. On September 22 this year, five ministries and commissions including the Ministry of Emergency Management officially issued the \"Notice on Further Strengthening the Safety Management of *ao acid an\". The notice imposes strict regulatory measures regarding the safety protection distances for new projects, the management of safety in production, storage, and transportation, as well as the management of sales, purchasing, and use. At the same time, the Ministry of Emergency Management, in conjunction with relevant departments, has formulated the \"Technical Specifications for the Safe Management of *ao Acid an\"; the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has also initiated revisions to the product standards for *ao Acid an, porous granular *ao Acid an, and *ao Acid an solutions. This series of regulatory documents plays a positive role in standardizing the development of the industry and ensuring safe production, but at the same time it has a significant impact on the industry, placing heavy pressure on companies to carry out reforms. Since last year, all enterprises producing *ao acid an by the atmospheric-pressure neutralization method have ceased operations for rectification as required. Solid *ao acid an production facilities have been equipped with facilities for producing nitrate fertilizers and *ao acid an solutions, etc.; the safety distances between storage areas and the storage conditions themselves have been modified in accordance with new requirements.