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The difficulty of operating large ammonia towers, or the level of skill required, is such that some say that operating large ammonia towers is beyond comparison to operating smaller ones. I’m a medium-sized ammonia tower, so I have a somewhat neutral stance as well as some say in matters. Production rates range from 5 tons per hour; rates of up to 20 tons have also been seen, but rates around 50 tons are only something I’ve heard of. In terms of process complexity, the larger the scale, the simpler and more stable the process becomes. The lower the operational intensity, the higher the degree of automation. Some processes with good smoothness can even achieve automation. But the power section certainly requires a much higher level of advancement as well as more sophisticated control technologies. The operational conditions of small and medium-sized ammonia towers are very unstable, with many unexpected incidents occurring. Thus, it’s like driving an early-model Liberation car – a certain level of maintenance was required; whereas for modern cars, as long as you know how to drive them, that’s sufficient. Of course, it’s not that operating large-scale ammonia plants doesn’t require a high level of expertise; that’s definitely not the case. It’s just a matter of the intensity of operation. As well as the complexity of the processes within the tower and the failure rate, etc. So there’s no need to be too cautious when operating small ammonia towers, such as those with a capacity of 3-5 tons. The principles are all similar.
The ease of operating an ammonia synthesis tower has nothing to do with its size; rather, it is directly related to the methods used in ammonia synthesis.