FTC
FTC,
Functional Total Control, is a completely new concept for
the catalytic oxidation of ammonia which has been available
since 1996 solely from Heraeus Nitro Technologies. Using computer
models, a fully integrated catalytic package is designed specifically
for each reactor. FTC is designed to reduce total production
costs: the cost savings are primarily achieved by reducing
precious metal losses and reducing the precious metal weight
of the installed catalyst. FTC does away with the requirement
of catchment systems to be installed in the reactor. To accomplish
this, FTC systems utilise specially developed, complex alloys
which enable the total weight of precious metals required
to be substantially reduced. When compared to conventional
catalyst systems, cost reductions of up to 35% per tonne of
nitric acid produced have been achieved in numerous industrial
applications. This result has been achieved without sacrificing
ammonia conversion efficiency or campaign length. On the contrary,
ammonia conversion efficiencies are bench marked over even
extended campaigns. FTC is suitable for virtually all reactor
types.
FTCplus
FTCplus
is a catalyst system for ammonia oxidation which incorporates
all features of the FTC system with the additional feature
that it produces substantially less nitrous oxide (N2O)
than other systems.
During
the ammonia oxidation reaction not all the ammonia passing
the catalyst is converted to HNO3. A small proportion
of ammonia is converted to nitrogen and nitrous oxide. Nitrous
oxide is an inert gas and, under normal operating conditions
in nitric acid plants, it passes unreacted through the absorption
column and into the atmosphere. Typically from 3 kg to 10
kg of nitrous oxide is emitted per tonne of nitric acid produced.
Nitrous oxide is known to strongly contribute to global warming:
it is around 310 times more damaging than carbon dioxide and
is a major factor in the destruction of the ozone layer. Nitric
acid plants are currently the largest man-made stationary
sources of nitrous oxide emissions and some countries already
impose taxes and limits on its emissions. The reduction of
nitrous oxide emissions has therefore become a major concern
to nitric acid manufacturers in recent years.
FTCplus,
which reduces the nitrous oxide emission at source. FTCplus
has been commercially available since 2000. After installation,
the emissions of nitrous oxide have been reduced on average
by more than 30% over extended campaign lengths in many industrial
applications. FTC and FTCplus consist of a number
of metallic gauze layers and can be installed in virtually
any reactor. No changes to the reactor itself and no additional
catalyst is required in order to operate FTCplus.
Both FTC and FTCplus catalyst systems can be delivered
in form of individual gauze layers or pads or mounted on the
Stretcher. Detailed documentation and installation information
as well as on-site installation support are available.
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