Claus plants in refineries process concentrated hydrogen sulfide fractions, converting them into elemental sulphur. They can also remove pollutants, particularly by decomposing ammonia.
Stricter environmental regulation leads to products with lower sulphur contents. As a result Claus plant loadings with hydrogen sulfide and ammonia are increasing and the Claus plant may become a bottleneck.
The problem can be solved in a flexible way by oxygen enrichment of the combustion air which increases capacity significantly. A new type of burner ensures excellent mixing of hydrogen sulfide and oxygen enriched air over a wide load range.
Benefits of oxygen enrichment:
- Increased Claus plant capacity
- Increased productivity without changing the pressure drop
- More effective treatment of ammonia containing feeds
- Less effort for tail gas purification (reduced nitrogen flow)