Extraction from elemental sulphur

Around sixty per cent of the sulphuric acid produced worldwide is made from elemental sulphur.

Virtually all sulphur is a by-product of natural gas and oil refining. The first step in the production of sulphuric acid from elemental sulphur is the combustion of the sulphur with dried air in an oxy-reactor specially developed by HUGO PETERSEN for this purpose.

The resulting SO₂ is catalytically oxidised to SO₃ by means of the contact process and subsequently converted to sulphuric acid.