Applications

• Aromatic Extraction
• Acidic Gas Treatment
• Extractive Distillation
• Fractionation
• Reaction Solvent
• Polymerisation Solvent
• Polymer Processing/Textiles
• Dyestuffs
• Printing Ink
• Agrochemical
• Pharmaceutical
• Electronics

Removal of hydrogen sulphide, carbon dioxide, carbon oxysulphide, carbon disulphide and mercaptans from gas streams. Recovery of sulphur dioxide.

Sulfolane is used in the Shell Sulfinol Process for the removal of acidic compounds (such as hydrogen suphide, carbon dioxide, carbon oxysulphide, carbon disulphide and mercaptans) from a variety of sour gas streams in industrial operations.

The process uses Sulfolane with diisopropanolamine (DIPA) for the simultaneous, selective, physical and chemical absorption of the gases which are subsequently released at ambient pressure and elevated temperature. The Sulfinol process has many advantages over conventional treating systems.
• Reduced solvent circulation due to higher gas solubilities.
• Considerably lower energy requirement for solvent regeneration.
• Treated gas, meeting the specification required for natural gases of pipeline quality, synthesis gas for ammonia production.
• Selective removal of H2S in some natural gas applications.
• Improved operability and smaller equipment, resulting from the nonfoaming characteristics of the solvent.
• Low corrosion rates.
• High on-stream factor.

In addition to offering lower capital and operating costs as a result of the process advantages listed above, the Sulfinol process offers additional benefits for some applications in that it can provide an essentially complete extraction of mercaptans at the same time as hydrogen sulphide and carbon dioxide are removed. It can also take out very high percentages of carbonyl sulphide. For instance, it is possible to clean Shell Gasification Process gas containing hydrogen sulphide and carbonyl sulphide to less than 1 ppm hydrogen sulphide and carbonyl sulphide.

The Sulfinol Process can be used to purify natural gas, for either bulk or deep removal of carbon dioxide from gas streams or the selective removal of hydrogen sulphide.

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