Apparatus and methods for treating acid gas, which utilizes multi-stage absorption cycle of ammonia desulfurization to treat acid tail gas after pre-treatment of the acid gas, thereby achieving the purpose of efficient and low-cost treatment of acid tail gas. The parameters of the acid tail gas may be adjusted by a regulatory system such that the enthalpy value of the acid tail gas is in the range of 60-850 kJ/kg dry gas, for example, 80-680 kJ/kg dry gas or 100-450 kJ/kg dry gas, to meet the requirements of ammonia desulfurization, and achieve the synergy between the acid gas pre-treatment and ammonia desulfurization. Furthermore, hydrogen sulfide may be converted into sulfur/sulfuric acid plus ammonium sulfate at an adjustable ratio.

The methods and systems are disclosed which leverage sulfur abatement resources present at most refineries or other hydrocarbon processing plants, such as natural gas processing plants to capture and treat sulfur-containing byproducts, such as SO.sub.2, generated during the regeneration of spent HDP catalysts. Thus, the disclosed methods and systems allow for converting hazardous waste spent catalyst to a salable product at it source while simultaneously capturing the sulfur oxides removed from the catalyst and converting them to a useful product instead of a resultant waste stream requiring management and/or disposal. Thus, spent sulfur bearing refinery wastes, such as HDP catalyst, can be roasted or regenerated at the refinery site to convert the hazardous sulfur-bearing wastes into one or more salable products.

A method and system for abating the emissions of at least sulfur dioxide present in a tail gas emitted from sulfur recovery units are provided. The invention is characterized by the provision of at least two adsorber units in a parallel arrangement. While one adsorber is in an adsorption mode, it receives a gas contaminated w/ sulfur dioxide and adsorbs and removes the sulfur dioxide out of the gas. The other adsorber is in regeneration mode, and receives an acid gas stream comprising hydrogen sulfide as well as an oxygen-containing gas to regenerate the spent adsorbent material and produce an off-gas comprising hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide. This off-gas is then recycled back to the sulfur recovery unit.

Apparatus and methods for treating acid gas, which utilizes multi-stage absorption cycle of ammonia desulfurization to treat acid tail gas after pre-treatment of the acid gas, thereby achieving the purpose of efficient and low-cost treatment of acid tail gas. The parameters of the acid tail gas may be adjusted by a regulatory system such that the enthalpy value of the acid tail gas is in the range of 60-850 kJ/kg dry gas, for example, 80-680 kJ/kg dry gas or 100-450 kJ/kg dry gas, to meet the requirements of ammonia desulfurization, and achieve the synergy between the acid gas pre-treatment and ammonia desulfurization. Furthermore, hydrogen sulfide may be converted into sulfur/sulfuric acid plus ammonium sulfate at an adjustable ratio.

The methods and systems are disclosed which leverage sulfur abatement resources present at most refineries or other hydrocarbon processing plants, such as natural gas processing plants to capture and treat sulfur-containing byproducts, such as SO.sub.2, generated during the regeneration of spent HDP catalysts. Thus, the disclosed methods and systems allow for converting hazardous waste spent catalyst to a salable product at it source while simultaneously capturing the sulfur oxides removed from the catalyst and converting them to a useful product instead of a resultant waste stream requiring management and/or disposal. Thus, spent sulfur bearing refinery wastes, such as HDP catalyst, can be roasted or regenerated at the refinery site to convert the hazardous sulfur-bearing wastes into one or more salable products.

Apparatus and methods for treating acid gas, which utilizes multi-stage absorption cycle of ammonia desulfurization to treat acid tail gas after pre-treatment of the acid gas, thereby achieving the purpose of efficient and low-cost treatment of acid tail gas. The parameters of the acid tail gas may be adjusted by a regulatory system such that the enthalpy value of the acid tail gas is in the range of 60-850 kJ/kg dry gas, for example, 80-680 kJ/kg dry gas or 100-450 kJ/kg dry gas, to meet the requirements of ammonia desulfurization, and achieve the synergy between the acid gas pre-treatment and ammonia desulfurization. Furthermore, hydrogen sulfide may be converted into sulfur/sulfuric acid plus ammonium sulfate at an adjustable ratio.

A method for increasing sulfur recovery from an acid gas feed comprising the steps of introducing the acid gas feed and a sulfur dioxide enriched air stream to a Claus process to produce a product gas stream, introducing the product gas stream to a thermal oxidizer to produce a flue gas stream, cooling the flue gas stream to produce a cooled take-off stream, separating the cooled take-off stream into a saturated gas stream, heating the saturated gas stream to produce a membrane gas stream, introducing the membrane gas stream to a membrane sweeping unit, the membrane sweeping unit comprises a membrane, the sulfur dioxide in the membrane gas stream permeates the membrane of the membrane sweeping unit, introducing a sweep air stream, the sweep air stream collects the sulfur dioxide to create the sulfur dioxide enriched air stream.

A system includes a purification unit configured to process a vapor stream including sulfur dioxide. The purification unit includes an inlet configured to allow the vapor stream to enter the purification unit. The purification unit includes a steam coil configured to circulate steam and provide a source of heat. The purification unit includes a packed bed. The purification unit includes a tray configured to accumulate sulfur. The purification unit includes an absorber section configured to remove at least a portion of the sulfur dioxide from the vapor stream. The purification unit includes an outlet configured to allow an effluent with a lower sulfur dioxide content than the vapor stream to exit the purification unit. The system includes a sulfur tank including a vent line in fluid communication with the inlet. The vent line is configured to allow vapor to flow from the sulfur tank to the purification unit.

A system and method for producing hydrogen, including steam reforming elemental sulfur to generate hydrogen gas and sulfur dioxide, to give a mixture including hydrogen gas, sulfur dioxide, elemental sulfur gas, and water vapor, removing the elemental sulfur gas to give a process gas including the hydrogen gas, sulfur dioxide, and water vapor, and isolating the hydrogen gas or a hydrogen gas rich stream.

A system and method for removing sulfur compounds from gas, including providing a feed gas having sulfur compounds including hydrogen sulfide (H.sub.2S) to a sulfur recovery unit (SRU) that has a furnace or a non-thermal plasma (NTP) reactor, discharging an SRU tail gas having H.sub.2S from the SRU to a tail gas treatment (TGT) unit having a hydrogenation reactor, a quench tower, and a TGT NTP reactor, converting sulfur compounds in the SRU tail gas in the hydrogenation reactor into H.sub.2S, discharging a process gas having H.sub.2S from the hydrogenation reactor to the quench tower and removing water vapor from the process gas in the quench tower, discharging an overhead gas having H.sub.2S from the quench tower to the TGT NTP reactor, and converting H.sub.2S in the TGT NTP reactor into hydrogen (H.sub.2) and elemental sulfur.