Will the sharp rise in sulfuric acid prices spur significant development of ammonia-based desulfurization?
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Since the beginning of this year, sulfur prices have risen sharply and are expected to remain high for a long time. Meanwhile, agricultural product prices have also increased significantly, and the prices of sulfuric acid have risen considerably as well; the price of sulfuric anhydride has also increased a lot. This creates a clear cost advantage for the production of acid from flue gases in the non-ferrous metal processing industry. As for desulfurization in power plant boilers, there are various methods available, but limestone-based desulfurization is the most common approach. Ammonia-based desulfurization does not offer any significant advantages, due to issues related to industry awareness and the fact that the price difference between liquid ammonia and sulfuric anhydride is not large. And now, due to the sharp rise in sulfur and sulfuric acid prices, the prices of phosphate fertilizers, compound fertilizers, and sulfuric acid amine have also increased significantly. This has greatly improved the economic viability of ammonia-based desulfurization. Therefore, if this situation continues, will it promote the substantial development of ammonia-based desulfurization? Discussion is welcome.
I don’t think so. The reasons are as follows: 1. Ammonia-based desulfurization can recover SO2 and produce sulfuric acid. Of the sulfuric acid produced, approximately 70% is reused in the acidolysis of sulfurous acid to produce sulfuric acid AN, while 30% is exported as sulfuric acid. This process is generally suitable for situations with high SO2 levels and is not appropriate for many power plants. 2. There are certain safety issues associated with the transportation and storage of ammonia. Ordinary power plants, or industries with increased SO2 emissions, do not have the safety measures typical of the chemical industry; adding such measures will undoubtedly increase the burden on those enterprises or industries. 3. Anhydrous sulfuric acid is a good fertilizer, but it is not suitable for the soils in our country, especially the acidic soils in the south. It causes soil compaction for the same reason as ammonium carbonate. 4. With the development of compound fertilizers, sulfuric an has a certain market, but its usage is limited after all, so it is not possible to consume large amounts of it. 5. Many enterprises that need desulfurization are located in remote areas, and there are also issues with the transportation and sales of sulfuric acid. Therefore, one should not blindly adopt the ammonia-based desulfurization method just because the price of sulfuric acid has increased. The key is still to meet the needs of the own enterprise!
Even if the prices of sulfuric acid and ammonium sulfate do not rise, cost analysis shows that ammonia-based desulfurization will not result in losses, after all, 1 ton of ammonia can be used to produce 4 tons of ammonium sulfate； The reason it is not widely adopted is mainly due to the insufficient maturity of the technology. In China, the main companies engaged in ammonia-based desulfurization are Jiangnan Environmental Protection, Fokas Environmental Protection, Yichang Environmental Protection, Shenchuan Environmental Protection, and others. Apart from Shenchuan Environmental Protection, the project capacities of other companies are generally in the range of a few dozen megawatts. I heard that Shenchuan Environmental Protection has secured a 330-megawatt ammonia-based flue gas desulfurization project in Inner Mongolia, but it hasn’t been built yet; it’s unclear what will happen in the future. There are quite a few problems with the projects carried out by these companies. The most significant issue is the low purity of sulfuric acid An, which directly leads to a sharp drop in product prices and also undermines the advantage of low operating costs that is associated with ammonia-based desulfurization ； Secondly, during operation, there are numerous issues such as the control of ammonium sulfite oxidation, aerosol problems, and control of the crystallization process ； Other aspects, such as the transportation of raw materials and explosion-proof requirements during storage, also have strict regulations, along with stringent safety measures. These issues ultimately led to the failure of ammonia-based desulfurization to be widely adopted. Therefore, regarding the increase in sulfuric acid prices mentioned by the original poster, I believe it should not directly lead to a significant expansion of ammonia-based desulfurization methods.
The analysis is very reasonable, and I have also gained deep insights from it.
I’ve learned a lot! It’s necessary to keep an eye on the development of various industries at all times: lol