Source: thyssenkrupp Uhde
thyssenkrupp Uhde (Dortmund, Germany) and Orica have successfully completed the Kooragang Island Decarbonization Project in Newcastle, Australia with the successful commissioning of thyssenkrupp Uhde’s effective EnviNOx technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at Orica’s three on-site nitric acid plants. For this project, thyssenkrupp Uhde provided the proprietary equipment, including the reactor vessels and the catalysts. Orica is one of the world’s leading mining and infrastructure solution providers with a global manufacturing capability.
With the EnviNOx technology, it is anticipated that this project will eliminate approximately 567,000 metric tons (m.t.) of carbon dioxide equivalents from the site per year which equals the annual emissions from 50,000 Australian homes. This reduction in greenhouse gas emissions corresponds to 48% of the site’s total greenhouse gas emissions and 11% of all chemical industry emissions in Australia.
“With our proven EnviNOx technology, we at thyssenkrupp Uhde are making a significant contribution to the elimination of greenhouse gas emissions, thus improving the sustainability of manufacturing and reducing the carbon footprint of industries,” says Cord Landsmann, CEO thyssenkrupp Uhde. “We are committed to a more sustainable future and therefore support our customers in achieving their sustainability goals using our proven technologies across the value chain.”
In acknowledging a significant decarbonization milestone, Orica managing director and CEO Sanjeev Gandhi says: “This project clearly demonstrates that with the right policy settings and corporate commitments, emissions reduction is possible in hard-to-abate industries of our economy. We will continue to invest across our operations, to ensure Australian manufactured products remain competitive as the world transitions to a lower carbon economy.”
Thyssenkrupp Uhde’s state-of-the-art EnviNOx technology for the combined removal of N2O and NOx is capable of almost the complete removal of N2O and NOx emissions from various chemical production plants. Industrial-scale EnviNOx units have already been successfully sold over 60 times by thyssenkrupp Uhde worldwide, abating more than 30,000 m.t./yr of NOx and around 70,000 m.t./yr of N2O, equivalent to around 20 million m.t./yr of CO2.
This corresponds to the annual amount of CO2 absorbed by more than 3 million hectares of central European forest. To date, all EnviNOx units together have already abated a total of more than 220 million m.t. of CO2 equivalents. Thus, EnviNOx technology continues to make a noticeable contribution to the global reduction of gases harmful to the climate and environment.