Urea production
High pressure pumps for urea production
Urea is one of the most important and most produced chemicals in the world, with a production volume of around 200 million tons per year. It is mainly used as a nitrogen fertilizer, but there are numerous other areas of application. Urea is a widely used raw material for the chemical industry, for example in the production of polymers, melamine, resins, adhesives and glues. Urea is used in gas aftertreatment in power plants and combustion engines to reduce toxic nitrogen oxides (keywords: AdBlue, SCR, DeNOx, DEF). As a moisturizing factor, urea is used in many cosmetics, and the pharmaceutical industry also uses it as an active ingredient. Due to the growing world population, demand will continue to rise up in the coming years.
Liquid ammonia and carbamate shall be conveyed in the manufacturing process. This task is performed by URACA high-pressure pumps. They have a high degree of efficiency and reliably meet the requirements of critical chemicals.
Our services for your benefit
- large plant capacities of 5000 MTPD can be realized
- URACA has over 70 years of experience in this field
- robust, durable high-pressure pumps
- maximum service life of wearing parts
- reliable operation thanks to the conservative design of the pumps
- low load on the moving components
- maintenance-friendly design
- very high efficiency
- flow rate precisely adjustable by speed regulation is possible
The manufacturing process
For the production process of technical urea, ammonia and carbon dioxide are used in the so-called Haber-Bosch process. In a high pressure reactor, the ammonia reacts with the carbon dioxide in an exothermic reaction to form ammonium carbamate. Carbamate represents an intermediate stage in the manufacturing process and reacts endothermically to urea and water in a further process step.
In order to press ammonia and the intermediate carbamate into the reactor, high pressure is necessary. The high-pressure pumps must deliver operating pressures of 140 to 240 bar. At the same time, large plants require ammoniac flow rates of 2,000 liters per minute or higher.
The pumps work in hard 24-hour continuous operation and require maintenance for long periods of time. Carbamate is very aggressive and corrosive. High process temperature up to is required to keep the carbamate in a liquid state of aggregation. Crystallation of the process media in the sealing area of the liquid end must be avoided at all cost.
The design of the ammonia pump must take into account the special properties of a liquefied gas. Liquid ammonia has poor lubricating properties and has higher compressibility than water. Operational reliability is extremely important. When ammonia is released, a huge volume of gas is created, displacing oxygen and freezing the surroundings. This represents an extreme risk to all persons in the immediate vicinity.
As one of the most important chemicals, urea is used in many areas of daily life:
- Nitrogen fertilizer - which secures the diet of the world's population and is based on urea
- Exhaust aftertreatment in internal combustion engines and industrial plants - urea injected into the exhaust gas stream (AdBlue®) reduces toxic nitrogen oxides
- Chemical industry urea is the starting material of many manufacturing processes (e.g. melamine, glues, resins and binders for the wood industry)
- Further uses: Additive in feed, substitute for road salt, stabilizer in food or moisturizer in cosmetics
