Hydrodesulfurization (Sulfur Recovery)

A refining process to sharply reduce the sulfur content of fuels such as jet and diesel. Removing the sulfur from fuels is a major public health goal, because its combustion releases sulfur dioxide (SO2) that irritates the respiratory tract and causes acid rain harmful to plants. Hydrodesulfurization recovers the sulfur by causing the hydrocarbons to react with hydrogen and produce hydrogen sulfide (H2S) at high temperature and pressure (> 350°C and 34 bar), in the presence of nickel-cobalt or nickel-molybdenum catalysts.