Section: CRUNS Features

The International Methanol Technology Operators Forum (IMTOF) met at the Leonardo Royal St Paul’s hotel in London from June 11th-14th.

A new book by leading industry expert Kish Shah looks at all aspects of ammonium nitrate production.

Hydrocarbon-based production of ammonia carries an unavoidable carbon footprint. But one of the best methods for mitigating that footprint is already here: ultra-low carbon-intensity ammonia production, also known as “blue” ammonia. With blue ammonia production, a typical ammonia plant can sequester or repurpose game-changing volumes of carbon dioxide that would otherwise end up in the atmosphere. To help foster an optimal understanding of the benefits, Ameet Kakoti and Per Juul Dahl of Topsoe A/S provide an overview of the technologies that can help any ammonia operation achieve and maintain sustainable operations – sooner rather than later.

Paz Muñoz and Carmen Perez of Stamicarbon discuss the strategic selection of future-proof technology for nitric acid plants. To produce nitric acid in a feasible and sustainable way, manufacturers must carefully choose the right technology and consider the capex and opex involved in the production process to ensure long-term profitability.

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-toliquids (GTL/CTL) plants.

The world’s transition toward the use of hydrogen and ammonia as clean energy and fuel sources will depend upon production technologies that are affordable, scalable, and meet net zero carbon targets. 8 Rivers recently introduced8 RH2 , a groundbreaking solution that offers world-leading efficiency in hydrogen production and captures over 99% of CO2 emissions. Maulik Shelat of 8 Rivers provides an overview of the technology with a comparison to other low-carbon hydrogen production technologies.

Horisont Energi has the aspiration to develop the most carbon and energy efficient blue ammonia plant in the world, an environmentally friendly plant with a focus on sustainable solutions. This article describes the main features of the Barents Blue Ammonia project, such as 99% carbon capture rate target, a high degree of modularisation, winterisation, infrastructure for ammonia and CO2 management and the provision for future expansion.

Although the nitric acid industry has an extensive history dating back centuries, nitric acid production continues to be a dynamic process with bespoke system solutions necessary per plant rather than a one size fits all. Kate Cardonne of Johnson Matthey discusses strategies to balance the cost and performance in nitric acid production.

Linde has developed a new adsorptive carbon dioxide removal process, called HISORP® CC, including but not limited to blue ammonia production. Based on a combination of mature technologies the process overcomes the drawbacks of traditional CO2 removal techniques and provides a carbon capture rate of greater than 99%. Thomas Ried discusses the pros and cons of different process configurations for CO2 removal and the benefits of the new technology.

Highly efficient ammonia synthesis and subsequent cracking to hydrogen are key processes in the transition to the green hydrogen economy. Catalysts play an important role in the ammonia cracking process. Clariant offers both nickel and precious metal catalysts for this application and research on robust catalysts that allow lower temperatures for increased energy efficiency is ongoing.