Author: meninderkaurdavies

A round-up of current and proposed projects involving non-nitrogen synthesis gas derivatives, including methanol, hydrogen, synthetic/substitute natural gas (SNG) and gas- and coal to liquids (GTL/CTL) plants.

Ammonia markets continue to be dominated by unplanned outages in Saudi Arabia (where the SAFCO 4 and one of the Ma’aden ammonia plants are both down, removing 2.3 million t/a of merchant ammonia from the market). This comes on top of other shutdowns earlier in the year on Trinidad, in the US and Australia.

The heart of any urea plant is the high-pressure urea synthesis section. Properly functioning safety valves are vital to protect the high-pressure section against ruptures due to pressures that are too high in case of upset conditions. However, the very corrosive intermediate ammonium carbamate makes the reliable and proper functioning of safety valves more challenging.

A consortium has unveiled plans to build one of the largest green hydrogen plants in the world in a bid to make Oman a leader in renewable energy technology. The $30 billion project is being developed by Oman’s state-owned oil firm OQ, green fuels developer InterContinental Energy and Kuwait government-backed renewables investor EnerTech. Construction is scheduled to start in 2028 in Al Wusta governorate on the Arabian Sea. It will be built in stages, with the aim to be at full capacity by 2038, powered by 25 GW of wind and solar energy. Two years has already been spent on solar and wind monitoring analysis for the development. According to the consortium, the site chosen has the optimal diurnal profile of strong wind at night and reliable sun during the day, and is also located near the coast for seawater intake and electrolysis.

T. Hentrich and B. Nowak of VDM Metals provide an overview of the development of VDM® Alloy 699 XA, a new generation, metal dusting resistant alloy, available in a wide range of product forms, for demanding applications in the chemical process industry.

Market Insight courtesy of Argus Media

The International Fertilizer Association (IFA) says that Svein Tore Holsether has been elected as its new chair of the Association. IFA said in its press release that the selection of Holsether, the president and CEO of Yara International, is a continuation of the industry’s commitment to sustainability.

A selection of innovative products and technologies that have recently been brought to market.

The European Union is seeking to create a climate-neutral and circular economy through its flagship Green Deal policy. The fertilizer industry can support these objectives by adopting inhibitor treatment technology (ITT) and controlled-release fertilizers (CRFs) based on biodegradable polymers. These two innovations have a vital role to play in improving nitrogen use efficiency and the shift towards more sustainable resource use, says Dr Matthias Potthoff of thyssenkrupp Fertilizer Technology.

We highlight the large-scale nitrogen projects that are currently under development across the globe – with a focus on ammonia and urea technology licensors and engineering contractors.