To comply with strict emission regulations and enable the beneficial processing of sulfur-containing exhaust gases, the wet catalytic H2SO4process (WSA, wet gas sulphuric acid) has become established. It is one of the most important gas purification processes on the market today because, in addition to ensuring environmental safety, it offers the economic advantage of marketable sulfuric acid.
The WSA process is primarily found in the petrochemical industry, for example in:
- Regeneration of spent sulfuric acid from alkylation
- Purification of exhaust gases from the Claus plant
- Treatment of H2S from the amine regenerator (MDEA gas scrubber)
- Purification of flue gases from the combustion of highly sulfur-containing fuels, e.g. petroleum coke
LiquiSonic® Sound velocity measurement in comparison
Application
In the first step of the wet catalytic WSA process, the sulfur component H2S aus Abgasen katalytisch in SO2 is catalytically converted. In a subsequent step, at approx. 400 °C, conversion to SO3, welches mit der Luftfeuchtigkeit zu Schwefelsäure reagiert. Durch Nutzung der Reaktionswärme und des Wärmeeinhaltes der Abgase kann dieser Prozess bereits bei niedrigen Abgaskonzentrationen (S-Komponenten < 0,2 Vol%) ohne zusätzlicher Wärmeenergie gefahren werden.
The LiquiSonic® Sensors ensure precise concentration measurement of sulfuric acid even at high concentrations. The individual process stages can be continuously monitored inline and optimally adjusted using the LiquiSonic® measurement system Due to the high dependency of the ultrasonic velocity, an accuracy of +/- 0.05 wt% is achieved for sulfuric acid.
Installation
The LiquiSonic® Immersion sensors can be easily installed in the pipelines after sulfuric acid production or blending. The LiquiSonic® Controller 30 can be connected to up to 4 sensors. This makes it possible to monitor several measuring points simultaneously.
Typical measuring range:
Concentration range H2SO4: 80 to 100 wt%
Temperature range: 20 to 90 °C
Customer benefits
The robust sensor design and the choice of special materials, such as Hastelloy C2000, ensure long system service life in the process.
LiquiSonic® reduces time-consuming laboratory measurements:
- Time required: 1 h per day
Compared to conductivity and density measurement, LiquiSonic® in the concentration range of 80 to 100 wt% generates a clear signal and thus provides reliable process information at all times.
LiquiSonic® ensures precise analysis and monitoring of the H2SO4 or oleum concentration with permanent data recording.
