Making a Sulfuric Acid in The Industry

Nimas Ayu Prawito Hapsari (2B/ D4)

This industry is very profitable because sulfuric acid can be used as a medicine,
explosions substance. Moreover, the side product (oleum) is the raw material of
detergent. And the energy of this plant also from the side product, that is, from a
waste heat boiler, which is using the heat of the drying tower a burner as a fuel.

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1 First of all, we must take the sulfur
from the mountain area. The way to take
it, we must bomb the hill or by frasch
process. Usually, the manufacturer takes
Drilling Process by frasch process.
Then, bore the hole until 150 to
Take raw materials (Sulphur) from the 750 m from the ground level. After that,
earth put the concentric pipe in it. For the
operation well, put the hot water at
about 160°C between the 20- and 10 cm
pipes into the ground. The sulfur in the
ground will melt and being heavier the
water. When the molten sulfur enters the
pipe, it’ll be compressed by compressed
hot air in 3-cm pipes and make sulfur rise
from the ground.
On the surface, the liquid sulfur
moves through steam-heated lines to a
separator where the air is removed. The
sulfur can be solidified or kept liquid in
the steam heated storage tanks. More
than 95% sulfur is shipped as a liquid in
tank cars.
After it arrived in manufacturing
the employee will check the condition of
sulfur, and continuing next process.

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2. Contact Process
In this process, we need dry air
to react sulfur with oxygen. Oxygen is
contained in dry air. So we must dry
the air until the water in the air to
disappear. In the drying tower, air will
contact by 98%-99% sulfuric acid.
This reaction produces much heat and
dry air. After that the dry air ahead to
the burner
At first step sulfur enters the
melter, the purpose is making partially
solid sulfur will melting and easy to
react. After that liquid sulfur head to
the burner. In the burner, sulfur will
react with oxygen and turn into sulfur
dioxide as a gas. The dry air to the
burner is from drying tower. Sulfur
dioxide flow through Waste Heat Boiler
to 4-Pass Converter.
Oxidation reaction will happen in
the converter. In the converter have
four stages. Every stage contains
Vanadium Pentoxide as a catalyst.
Then, every stages it’ll produce sulfite
(SO3) and forwarded to the heat
exchanger.
After processing in the heat exchanger
it turns back to the next stage in the
converter. The reason, why it uses a
heat exchanger because the conversion
of sulfur dioxide decreases with an
increase in temperature. At 400°C the
product almost 100%, but the process
is slow. Happening reaction in
converter like equation below:
SO2 + ½O2↔SO3
From that equation, it can look
the conversion of SO2 to SO3 is a
reversible reaction. If a portion of the
SO3 is removed, more SO2 will be
converted. The gases (SO3) leaving the
converter, after having passed through
two or three layers of catalyst (stages).
Then it will be cooled and continuing to
Intermediate Absorber.
In the intermediate absorber, the
gases will contact with H2SO4. The
concentration of acids between 98.5%
- 99%. In this stuff will produce 100%
H2SO4 and oleum (H2SO4.SO3). The
gasses are contacted with strong
sulfuric acid because the acid has a
lower vapor pressure than other
concentration. So, why we don’t use
water to make it? water cannot use
because direct contact between the
water and SO3 will make acid mist
which is impossible to absorb.
Furthermore, the product from
fourth layers of catalyst will enter final
absorber. And its products are oleum.
The side product of the converter is SO2
and oxygen, but it still follows the SO3
in the absorber. After the absorber
produces its product, they will ahead to
product tank. Finally, manufacture sells
the sulfuric acid or dilute them depend
on the order.
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