Tag: CF Industries

Georgy Eliseev , Principal Analyst at Fertecon for IHS Markit, looks at the medium to long term outlook for both ‘green’ and ‘blue’ ammonia production.

Johnson Matthey (JM) has secured a multiple licence for China’s Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group’s latest project to develop five of the largest single train methanol plants in the world. Located at Baofeng’s Ordos City complex in Inner Mongolia, the five plants each have a planned capacity 7,200 t/d. Under the agreement Johnson Matthey will be the licensor of all five plants and supplier of associated engineering, technical review, commissioning assistance, and catalyst. The plants will take synthesis gas as a feed and use JM radial steam raising converters in a patented series loop. Within the design, there is potential for 1-2% more feedstock efficiency over the life of the catalyst. Thanks to JM’s methanol loop synthesis technology, the plants will provide enhanced energy savings along with low OPEX, CAPEX and emissions. When complete, the plants will represent JM’s 13th operating license in China for a mega-scale plant (>5,500 t/d) and the fourth JM methanol design licensed by Ningxia Baofeng Energy.

ClimeCo says that it has promoted Dr. Scott Subler to Chief Science Officer (CSO). Subler has made an enduring mark on the carbon offset world over the last 15 years. From overseeing the first US offset delivery from a dairy farm methane capture project to chairing the Offsets Committee for the Chicago Climate Exchange, Subler has been a major influence on many carbon offset methodologies that are used today. His work investigating different types of lagoon cover systems for dairy and swine farms in different climates continues to impact new methane capture installations, and his advocacy for organic waste composting projects resulted in the protocol used today at the Climate Action Reserve.

Alzbeta Klein will become the new director general (DG) of the International Fertilizer Association (IFA) on 11th January 2021. She succeeds Charlotte Hebebrand who resigned in May to become Nutrien’s chief sustainability officer and executive vice president (EVP) for stakeholder relations. Patrick Heffer is currently acting as IFA’s interim DG.

Illinois-headquartered CF Industries has made a long-term commitment to low-carbon ammonia production and net-zero emissions.

The UK Agricultural Industries Confederation has announced that Sam Bell , UK Commercial Director at CF Industries and Nick Major , Corporate Affairs Director at ForFarmers have taken over as chairs for the AIC’s Fertiliser Executive Committee and Feed Executive Committee, respectively.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) have announced the ‘Next Gen Fertilizer Challenge’, a joint EPA-USDA partnership and competition to advance agricultural sustainability in the United States. The competition includes two challenges that seek proposals for new and existing fertilizer technologies to maintain or improve crop yields while reducing the impacts of fertilizers on the environment.

We report on how the fertilizer industry and individual companies are working to mitigate the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

A Stamicarbon urea plant attempts to start up after a scheduled turnaround. Due to maintenance issues, it is necessary to shut down and block in the synthesis section several times. Although licensor’s procedures have been followed, several signs of active corrosion are noticed in the liner of the reactor. What could the cause be for this unexpected behaviour? Can sharing experiences from colleagues from other urea plants provide valuable support to find the root cause or even provide new insights into possible new causes? One observation is that the typical heating up rate of a liner in a reactor is much higher than recommended (refer to diagram). The condensation heat of steam heats up the liner much faster than the carbon steel pressure bearing wall. This creates stress on the liner and affects the lifetime of the liner. Another observation is a temperature rise in the reactor during a blocking in situation. This can be a cause for loss of oxygen required for passivation, resulting in higher corrosion rates.

Nutrien is the world’s largest crop nutrient company with a market capitalisation of almost $20 billion (Figure 1). This fertilizer industry giant produces and distributes over 25 million tonnes of potash, nitrogen and phosphate products for agricultural, industrial and feed customers globally. The company’s agriculture retail business also serves over 500,000 growers worldwide through a network of international outlets.