In the chemical industry, nitrogen is an important raw material for synthetic fibers (nylon, acrylic), synthetic resins, synthetic rubber, etc. Nitrogen can also be used to produce fertilizers, such as ammonium bicarbonate, ammonium chloride, etc. Currently, the chemical industry is one of the sectors with the most extensive application of nitrogen equipment.

Functions of Chemical Nitrogen Generators

1. Purging containers, pipelines, reactors, and isolation chambers.

2. Preventing oxidation during synthetic fiber spinning and wire drawing, and protecting equipment from corrosion.

3. Filling nitrogen in paint and coating production to prevent polymerization during oil drying.

4. Providing protective gas for oil tankers (nitrogen sealing and purging gas on the oil surface).

5. Used as an inert gas, primarily for safe handling.

6. Used as one of the raw material gases for ammonia synthesis.

7. Used as a protective gas for equipment, isolating air to safeguard devices (pressurization inside ultra-low carbon equipment).

8. Protecting catalysts during the shutdown period of process systems.

Process Flow of Chemical Nitrogen Generators

Chemical nitrogen generators use high-quality carbon molecular sieves as adsorbents and operate on the principle of pressure swing adsorption to obtain nitrogen. Depending on the usage and requirements of the chemical nitrogen generator, the process flow of each unit may vary slightly, but the basic process and configuration are as follows: air compressor → storage tank → pipeline filter → refrigerated dryer (or other regenerative drying towers) → (ultra) fine filter → oil remover → buffer storage tank → adsorption towers A/B (two-tower process) → dust filter → nitrogen buffer storage tank → nitrogen analyzer → user. Air is compressed by the compressor to 0.8 MPa, cooled to room temperature in the air storage tank, and then enters the refrigerated dryer after oil-water separation through the pipeline filter. It flows through the fine filter, ultra-fine filter, and oil remover to remove oil and liquid water before reaching the buffer storage tank. It then enters the pressure swing adsorption separation system composed of carbon molecular sieve adsorption towers. After compressed air enters from the bottom of the container, oxygen, CO?, and moisture in the air are selectively adsorbed by the adsorbent, while the remaining components (primarily nitrogen) flow out from the outlet end, pass through the dust filter, enter the nitrogen buffer tank, and are output as product nitrogen after the nitrogen buffer tank. Subsequently, the adsorption tower undergoes processes such as pressure equalization and decompression to atmospheric pressure to remove the adsorbed impurities, completing the regeneration of the carbon molecular sieve. The two adsorption towers operate alternately in cycles, continuously feeding air and producing nitrogen. After measurement and analysis by the nitrogen analyzer to ensure purity standards are met, the nitrogen enters the nitrogen delivery main for use. The above process is automatically controlled by a PLC system. The nitrogen purity can reach up to 99.99%, and the nitrogen pressure is typically designed at around 0.6 MPa.