N20 Abatement

Cantonment, Florida, USA

Nitrous Oxide Emissions Control

Adipic acid is a white crystalline solid used in the manufacture of synthetic fibers, plastics, coatings, urethane foams, elastomers, and synthetic lubricants. It’s among the top 50 synthetic chemicals annually produced in the U.S. The largest use is in the manufacture of nylon. Nylon is used in many everyday items like carpets, tire cords, safety airbags, apparel, upholstery, auto parts, and countless other applications. A by-product of producing adipic acid is nitrous oxide, which is a greenhouse gas that’s nearly 300x more potent than carbon dioxide. In fact, the U.S. is one of the biggest producers of nitrous oxide. There are different technologies used to abate nitrous oxide and nitrous dioxide (N20), this project supports a plant that uses Thermal Reduction Unit (TRU), where N20 is destroyed by using flame burners with pre-mixed CH4, or natural gas. The TRU destroys nitrous oxide and N2O to a much lesser extent than other methods. As a result, this project involves the installation of an absorption column that will convert nitrous oxide and N20 to nitric acid via a high-pressure water absorption process. This absorption column will allow the Thermal Reduction Unit (TRU) to accept a higher percentage of the flow from the adipic acid plant, resulting in a higher quantity of nitrous oxide destroyed. This project will result in net emissions reduction from adipic acid production of the equivalent of 6,745,159 metric tons of carbon dioxide.