Strong gas process and apparatus for sulfuric acid production

A process for producing sulfuric acid in a sulfuric acid plant, comprising the steps of:

• (a) reacting a source of sulfur species (14) and a source of strong oxygen gas (18) having an excess concentration of oxygen of greater than about 21 vol. % in a sulfur dioxide generation unit (101) to produce a process gas comprising sulfur dioxide (22);
• (b) supplying the process gas comprising sulfur dioxide gas into a catalytic converter (102) configured to oxidize the sulfur dioxide gas to produce a process gas comprising sulfur trioxide (26);
• (c) supplying the process gas comprising sulfur trioxide into an absorption/condensation/hydration unit operations (103) configured to hydrate the sulfur trioxide to produce sulfuric acid (30) and a used process gas (32);
• and
• (d) recirculating at least part of the used process gas as a stream of process recycle gas (34) into one or both of the sulfur dioxide generation unit and the catalytic converter, wherein the stream of process recycle gas comprises an excess concentration of sulfur dioxide gas of greater than about 12 vol. %.

A process for producing sulfuric acid in a sulfuric acid plant, comprising the steps of:

• (a) reacting a source of sulfur species (14) and a source of strong oxygen gas (18) having an excess concentration of oxygen of greater than about 21 vol. % in a sulfur dioxide generation unit (101) to produce a process gas comprising sulfur dioxide (22);
• (b) supplying the process gas comprising sulfur dioxide gas into a catalytic converter (102) configured to oxidize the sulfur dioxide gas to produce a process gas comprising sulfur trioxide (26);
• (c) supplying the process gas comprising sulfur trioxide into an absorption/condensation/hydration unit operations (103) configured to hydrate the sulfur trioxide to produce sulfuric acid (30) and a used process gas (32);
• and
• (d) recirculating at least part of the used process gas as a stream of process recycle gas (34) into one or both of the sulfur dioxide generation unit and the catalytic converter, wherein the stream of process recycle gas comprises an excess concentration of oxygen gas of greater than about 21 vol. %.