State of the Art of Industrial Chemical Processes for Desulfurization of Flue Gases from Fossil Fuel Combustion.

A number of currently operating industrial-scale processes for the removal of sulfur dioxide from flue gases emitted by thermal and thermoelectric power plants are described. Among these are nonregenerative processes involving absorption with limestone and/or lime, absorption by double alkalinization, and absorption by seawater and regenerative processes involving absorption by magnesium oxide, absorption by a solution of sodium sulfite and bisulfite, catalytic conversion of sulfur dioxide directly into dilute sulfuric acid, absorption by ammonium solutions, and adsorption on dry carbon followed by reduction of SO//2 to elementary sulfur. Also described are some so-called ″new generation″ processes which are currently either in the pilot plant phase or still undergoing laboratory study.