Reducing of SOx emissions participates in decreasing environmental pollution

Abstract EN

Environmental concerns have driven the need to remove sulphur-containing compounds from diesel fuel for reducing of SOx emissions which participates in decreasing environmental pollution and acid rain.

As the oxidative desulphurization is conducted under very mild reaction conditions, much attention has been recently devoted to this process.

In this contribution, desulphurization of peroxide in the presence of an acid catalyst such as formic acid, followed by extraction of the diesel fuels has been investigated by chemical oxidation of sulphur containing compounds with hydrogen oxidized compounds using acetonitrile or dimethylformamide (DMF).

Oxidative desulphurization (ODS) of diesel fuel was found to be very promising approach for the reduction of up to 85 to 90 % of sulphur content at low temperature (25-50 0C) and atmospheric pressure.

The reaction found to be exothermic so, the heat liberated during the reaction maintained continuity of the reaction at higher than room temperature through reaction period, therefore no need to further heating.

The flash point of the fuel was decreased and other physical and chemical properties were affected as number of oxidized fuel extraction is repeated.

Such extraction also removed sum of other aromatic hydrocarbons and affected the yield.

Extraction of sulphur compound in diesel fuel without oxidation by DMF, alcohol, ethyl alcohol, diethyl ether, acetyl chloride, acetonitrile and other organic solvents were investigated.

The investigation showed that the best solvent for sulphur content compound extraction was DMF.

In this study, modifications of the oxidation process occurred including the application of UV.

radiation to improve the oxidation process as conducted.

The new system required less oxidant and energy as compared to previous generations of desulphurization process without the significant loss of desulphurization efficiency and minimum impact on the fuel quality.

This study recommends that the oxidation extraction technique be used to meet the future environmental sulphur regulations in Kurdistan region north of Iraq