Let me share an actual case of a dry gas desulfurization tower for everyone to take a look at!

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This post was last edited by LQ198619 on 2017-7-14 00:31. Yesterday, I saw a member posting a question about what happens when the dry gas tower overpressures So today I’d like to share with you a case study that has occurred several times before – a real instance of tower flooding due to excessive differential pressure in the coking dry gas desulfurization tower. I hope this will be helpful to everyone. The coking dry gas desulfurization tower in our facility is a packed tower, equipped with three sections of packing made of rectangular saddle rings. It has been in use for about 8 years now, and no major problems have occurred during normal operation. However, in the past two years, there have been several instances of excessive differential pressure. We also have another catalytic dry gas desulfurization tower, which is of the plate-type design; such issues have not arisen with that tower at all. Effects of excessive differential pressure in the desulfurization tower: 1. Due to the high pressure difference, ethanolamine can be carried to the oil collection tank located at the upper part of the desulfurization tower; if not detected in time, it can also end up in the fuel gas system, resulting in the fuel gas containing ethanolamine. 2. It causes the hydrogen sulfide content in the dry gas to exceed acceptable levels, affecting the operation of subsequent production units; in the case of units that use dry gas to produce hydrogen, this leads to the desulfurization agent in the desulfurization tower used for hydrogen production becoming saturated very quickly. Let’s talk about our approach: When the differential pressure in the dry gas desulfurization tower started to increase for the first time, the rise in pressure was gradual, which gave the workshop time to make adjustments and determine the cause. Measures such as reducing the volume of dry gas and the circulation rate of ethanolamine were tried, but none of these solutions addressed the root problem. Later, it was suspected that coke powder present in the coking dry gas was causing blockages in the packing, thereby leading to the high differential pressure. The issue was resolved by removing the dry gas desulfurization tower and cleaning it. Later, once the differential pressure in the tower increased suddenly; within a few minutes it rose from zero to 50 KPA. Fortunately, the operator noticed this in time and directed the amine solution to the amine recovery unit at the outlet, rather than sending it to the fuel gas separation tank in the downstream equipment. The problem was ultimately resolved by cleaning the tower. We have now installed a filter at the dry gas inlet for coking dry gas desulfurization to remove coke dust; it has been in operation for almost a year now, and there has been no issue of sudden increases in differential pressure in the dry gas desulfurization tower. http://down.hcbbs.cc/attachment/forum/201706/10/203353z7y06fdo70r6eod0.jpg Petrochemical sector – New ideas for energy savings: the “Creative Thinking” campaign (the second phase is currently in full swing). http://bbs.hcbbs.com/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=1666758 (Source: Haichuan Chemical Industry Forum) 2017: “My Technical Upgrades” in the coal chemical industry. http://bbs.hcbbs.com/thread-1786290-1-1.html (Source: Haichuan Chemical Industry Forum website)