MECS® SULFOX™ Wet Gas Sulfuric Acid Process

The SULFOX™ wet gas sulfuric acid process is suitable for a wide range of applications in which wet waste gas, containing H₂S, CS₂ or SO₂, must be desulfurized. Our expert engineers can deliver results for clients in a vast array of industries, including metallurgical, general chemical, coal-to-chemicals, natural gas processing, steel (coking), power, viscose fibers, pigments production, and refinery and petro-chemical, among others.

Our distinctive SULFOX™ wet gas sulfuric acid process is guaranteed to yield low acid mist emissions with zero particles injection, using our proven, reliable Wet Electrostatic Precipitator (WESP). SULFOX™ achieves high levels of SO₂ conversion with a durable catalyst for wet gas service. The reliability of our process is further enhanced with our robust and low-maintenance plant equipment, including our acid condensation column, featuring short horizontal tubes.

Expert Solutions, Customized to Your Needs

MECS® SULFOX™ brings a unique and reliable wet gas acid process to the market to treat sulfur-containing waste gases. Drawing on two centuries of expertise, acquired by MECS, Inc. and DuPont in designing over 1000 acid plants worldwide and operating 10 DuPont sulfuric acid plants in North America, the MECS® SULFOX™ technology offers a reliable and proven wet gas acid plant design.

Our engineers can custom-design a SULFOX™ wet gas sulfuric acid plant according to your facility’s feed gas concentrations and requirements, while keeping your investment and operating costs as low as possible. We can supply all critical equipment and supervise installation. We can provide operator training for your workforce, as well as commissioning and startup assistance. Our processes and plant designs feature proprietary MECS® technologies, many of which have revolutionized performance, cost controls, and quality for the sulfuric acid industry, to deliver a very reliable and proven plant. For applications with a dirty off-gas stream, the very reliable and proven gas cleaning of MECS® DynaWave® Wet Gas Scrubbers technology can further enhance SULFOX™, to maximize plant reliability.

Key Features of MECS® SULFOX™

• Suitable for a wide range of off-gas compositions
• Efficient waste heat recovery
• Economical alternative with low operating costs compared to Claus (H₂S) or scrubbing (SO₂)
• No or minimal liquid effluent
• Very low cooling water consumption
• Simple automated operation, requiring few operators
• Very compact modular design, which minimize field fabrication
• Special MECS® catalyst for wet gas applications
• Long catalyst operation without screening
• Robust and low-maintenance acid condensation column with short horizontal tubes

Key Benefits to Your Organization

• Recovery of salable concentrated sulfuric acid
• Recovery of valuable high-pressure steam from concentrated H₂S feeds
• Guaranteed low acid mist emissions
• Low SO₂ emissions, custom-designed per local regulations
• Low operating costs
• Easy and safe equipment inspection and maintenance
• Reliable plant operation

MECS® SULFOX™ Wet Gas Sulfuric Acid Process Description

Depending on the source and composition of the feed gas, thermal oxidation with heat recovery, or gas cleaning and preheating, occurs before the sulfur-bearing gas enters the SULFOX™ converter. This converter contains catalyst beds using the MECS® WX line of catalyst, where the sulfur compounds are oxidized to SO₂ and SO₃. The SO₃ reacts with the water vapor to form gaseous sulfuric acid. The acid condenses in the condensation column, and evaporation of water produces concentrated acid that is collected in the sump of the column. Our Wet Electrostatic Mist Precipitator (WESP) removes the remaining acid mist. A further reduction of SO₂ emissions can be achieved with an additional tail gas treatment, if required, using proven MECS® DynaWave® Wet Gas Scrubbers in some cases.