HYBRID SULFUR RECOVERY PROCESS FOR NATURAL GAS UPGRADING

Technical Report · Wed Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 2003

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/825562· OSTI ID:825562

Dalrymple, Dennis

This third quarter report of 2003 describes progress on a project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to test a hybrid sulfur recovery process for natural gas upgrading. The process concept represents a low-cost option for direct treatment of natural gas streams to remove H{sub 2}S in quantities equivalent to 0.2-25 metric tons (LT) of sulfur per day. This process is projected to have lower capital and operating costs than the competing technologies, amine/aqueous iron liquid redox and amine/Claus/tail gas treating, and have a smaller plant footprint, making it well suited to both on-shore and off-shore applications. CrystaSulf{reg_sign} (service mark of CrystaTech, Inc.) is a new nonaqueous sulfur recovery process that removes hydrogen sulfide (H{sub 2}S) from gas streams and converts it into elemental sulfur. CrystaSulf features high sulfur recovery similar to aqueous-iron liquid redox sulfur recovery processes, but differs from the aqueous processes in that CrystaSulf controls the location where elemental sulfur particles are formed. In the hybrid process, approximately 1/3 of the total H{sub 2}S in the natural gas is first oxidized to SO{sub 2} at low temperatures over a heterogeneous catalyst. Low temperature oxidation is done so that the H{sub 2}S can be oxidized in the presence of methane and other hydrocarbons without oxidation of the hydrocarbons. The project involves the development of a catalyst using laboratory/bench-scale catalyst testing, and then demonstration of the catalyst at CrystaTech's pilot plant site in west Texas.

• Research Organization: CrystaTech, Inc. (US)
• Sponsoring Organization: (US)
• DOE Contract Number: FC26-99FT40725
• OSTI ID: 825562
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

03 NATURAL GAS
CAPITAL
CATALYSTS
HYDROCARBONS
HYDROGEN SULFIDES
IRON
METHANE
METRICS
NATURAL GAS
OPERATING COST
OXIDATION
PILOT PLANTS
SULFUR
TESTING