What is the high sulfur petroleum coke?

High-sulfur petroleum coke, a fuel-grade petroleum coke with a higher sulfur content, has gained significant attention in the cement kiln and power sector, and its escalating demand across industries can justify its unique ability to blend with traditional coal-fired boilers. Fuel-grade petroleum coke will also benefit from the continuous replacement of thermal coal with technologically innovative boiler designs. Petroleum coke, will get the attention of the steel industry as the transportation, rail, construction, automotive and road industries expand. Besides being a cost-effective alternative to conventional fuels, petroleum coke has proven to be an important asset for manufacturers in the chemical industry.

Introduction of High Sulfur Petroleum coke

Petroleum coke is a by-product of the petroleum refining process and is produced by the delayed coking process. The high sulfur and low sulfur of petroleum coke are mainly caused by the difference of raw materials used in delayed coking refining. The sulfur content of high-sulfur petroleum coke is generally 4-5, which is mainly used for fuel. With the increasing and deteriorating quality of crude oil, the scale of delayed coking units continues to expand, so the output of petroleum coke continues to increase, and the quality is dominated by high-sulfur coke.it has the characteristics of high carbon content and high calorific value, and is mainly used in cement, electrolytic aluminum, steel, glass and other industries. At present, the Franli’ plant is developing petroleum coke with reduced environmental pollution and excellent performance.

The Importance of High Sulfur Petroleum coke

The cement industry has become one of the major end users of fuel-grade petroleum coke. Worldwide, the most important application area of petroleum coke is the cement industry, which accounts for about 40% of the market share; followed by the production of prebaked anodes or graphite electrodes, which account for 22% of the market share. The global demand for cement is quite strong, leading to significant growth in industrialization and urbanization for major countries, which has a positive impact on the petroleum coke industry. Significant economic progress in the country has increased the amount of construction activity, leading to higher adoption of processed materials such as steel, cement, brick and glass.

However, considering that burning petroleum coke may produce polluting gases and considering environmental protection issues, the Franli plant has a rotary furnace equipped with a gravity settling chamber and a designated combustion chamber to precipitate impurities in the gas. The generated gas is cooled by a cooling cylinder, and impurities are collected by a cyclone dust collector, which greatly reduces the problem of pollution, and at the same time ensures the quality of the calcined petroleum coke.

Application of petroleum coke in cement

In ordinary cement production, petroleum coke is processed into petroleum coke powder through a grinding system, and the petroleum coke powder enters the burner at the kiln head and the decomposition furnace for combustion, producing high-temperature waste gas for use in the rotary kiln and the decomposition furnace. The use process of petroleum coke in the production of white cement is similar to that of ordinary cement, but requires high calorific value of fuel, low ash content of fuel and low Fe2O3 content. Petroleum coke as a fuel can meet this demand well. In cement production, sulfur in petroleum coke reacts with various alkaline oxides to form sulfate. Except for a small amount circulated in the material and high-temperature flue gas, the rest is solidified in the clinker and becomes a component of cement， achieve ultra-low emissions of sulfur.

One of the important reasons for petroleum coke as an energy source for cement production is the economic factor, that is, the ratio of calorific value to price. The low price and high calorific value of petroleum coke make it an effective way to reduce energy consumption. At present, some white cement enterprises in China have mastered the process technology that high sulfur is burned by coke, and can completely use petroleum coke, and sulfide and nitrogen oxides can meet the strictest emission requirements, increase the whiteness index of white cement, improve product quality. Steady improvements in process technology for high-sulfur petroleum coke at the Franli plant have greatly expanded fuel demand for the cement industry.