Modeling reaction quench times in the waste heat boiler of a Claus plant

Journal Article · Sat Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1994 · Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1021/ie00025a002· OSTI ID:5451896

Nasato, L V; Karan, K; Mehrotra, A K; Behie, L A ^[1]

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1. Univ. of Calgary, Alberta (Canada). Dept. of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering

At the high temperatures found in the modified Claus reaction furnace, the thermal decomposition and oxidation of H[sub 2]S yields large quantities of desirable products, gaseous hydrogen (H[sub 2]) and sulfur (S[sub 2]). However, as the temperature of the gas stream is lowered in the waste heat boiler (WHB) located downstream of the furnace, the reverse reaction occurs leading to reassociation of H[sub 2] and S[sub 2] molecules. To examine the reaction quenching capabilities of the WHB, a rigorous computer model was developed incorporating recently published intrinsic kinetic data. A sensitivity study performed with the model demonstrated that WHBs have a wide range of operation with gas mass flux in the tubes from 4 to 24 kg/(m[sup 2] [center dot] s). Most important, the model showed that is was possible to operate WHBs such that quench times could be decreased to 40 ms, which is a reduction by 60% compared to a base case scenario. Furthermore, hydrogen production could be increased by over 20% simply by reconfiguring the WHB tubes.

• OSTI ID: 5451896
• Journal Information: Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research; (United States), Journal Name: Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research; (United States) Vol. 33:1; ISSN IECRED; ISSN 0888-5885
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

03 NATURAL GAS
030700* -- Natural Gas-- Waste Management
BOILERS
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CLAUS PROCESS
CONTROL
DESULFURIZATION
ENERGY SOURCES
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL GAS
FUELS
GAS FUELS
GASES
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
HYDROGEN SULFIDES
INDUSTRIAL PLANTS
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS RECOVERY
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
NATURAL GAS
NATURAL GAS PROCESSING PLANTS
OPTIMIZATION
PROCESS CONTROL
PROCESSING
SULFIDES
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
WASTE HEAT BOILERS
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING