The Essential Chemical Industry - online search Urea Urea (carbamide), readily produced from ammonia and carbon dioxide, is a very important chemical in the HIN. ‘agricultural and the polymer industries. De=0 HyN“ H,N-CO-NH, Uses of urea Urea i te work's most commonly used nirogen feriizar and indeed mare urea i manufactured by mass than any other organic chemical Containing 46% N, isthe most concentrated nirogen feriizer andi realy avaiable as fee-owing pls (matoriak-and appicatonsiertizers Ntmipsts (granules). isthe cheapest form of nlrogen fertizer to ranspartand tis also tho least ely to ‘ca therefore favoured in developing countries. Figure 1 This lee paddy Ald In Talland has oan tested with ura, te nirogen-cntsning fertize thats rost used in devaoping countries, id premio in ion [An increasingly mportant use of urea is in reducing ar politon from diesel engines in cars, buses and lorres. Diesel engines run at high temperatures and nitogen and oxygen, from the ai, are able lo react together under these concitons to produce high concentvations of ric oxide. One way to ramave this pollutants to albw itto react wih ammonia fo form mrogen, Howover itis not possible to use ammonia rectly as Ris too volte aris poisonous. Instead a Sokiton of urea in walerfinjocted into the hot gases emerging Krom the engine inthe exhaust Urea s thermally decomposed to ammonia and carbon dioxide. This isthe reverse of te process used to make ammonia HyN-CO-NH, + HO ——> 2NH, + CO, Untke ammonia, urea f safe and easy to handle ‘Tho products, ammonia and carbon dioxide, togeter wi he exhaust gases, are passed immedataly over catalyst nthe exhaust system. ‘Ammonia reduces the oxides of nitrogen (mainly nic oxide), formed in the combustion processes, to ntrogen. The process is complex bul Ye overalreacton can be reprsentee thus: 4NH +4NO +0. —» 4N, + 6H,O “The system s known as Urea SCR (urea-based selective catalytic reduction) and can reduce pollo by nirogen oxides to almost zero.Several catalysts have Figure 2 Urea tanks are now ‘most new desl ores, uses and caren many (0 te oxhaust gases 36 8 32% aqueous soluton ofan aig ied with BiueTEC luton (ith he Bue nozzle to te lower tank and esl ve upper tank. hin persion of ale AC Jon used, One series is based on tansion metal oxides (for example those of vanadlum and tungsten) on a cater, tian dioxide. Another series is based on zeoltes(processesicatalysis-n-ndustyyhimfzecHte), in which some ofthe cations have been ‘exchanged wth a metal such copper. ‘Figure 3A Mercedes Banz lass E300 BlueTEC Hybrid car. The dase, gine te combined wit an slectte motor which allows for purely sectic hiving even at high spede which reduces the amount of pollutants ‘slgnitcanty compared to pure lesel engine. The amount nivogen comers Ov cabios nS mheaet ovo and wate aon pd permanent Ss Annual production of urea’ [wens 164 millon tonnes Masle East | 20 millon tonnes Restof Asa | 18 millon tonnes — Figure 44 tne éagram ofthe car above luseating fv hey elements inthe design 1 The axidtion exsist is used to remove unwanted hycrocertons ensuring that platoum or pala. 2 Known a an NOx cataytle converor It contains aluminium oxde on whose ‘surface, platinum and barium oxide ae preset traps the oxides of nirogen. When te solide stuated with Se oxides, unbuet hyckocarbon ae allowed fo flow trough, converting much ofthe mitre te niregen carbon donde and water A filter which wap particulates (eal plces of carbon and ote sald). {44 tank containing the solution of ro, |5 The SCR-etalye convertor which contains another extayt for example an oxide ‘of vanslum (or ington on Sanlu dove, whlch allows the athaust gases, tll containing some nitrogen oxides, rsct with ammonia formed rom the urea solution te produce exhaust ses wit nly aces of oxidesEurope | 5 millon tonnes Its expectee thatthe global annual production wilincrease to over 200 millon tonnes by 2018”. Manufacture of urea ‘Ammonia reacts wit carbon dhoxde to produce urea, Urea i alvay's manufactured close to an ammania plan (Figure 5) tect om ——> ammonia —>f og ‘lant > carbon doside—o>{_ “YM (by-product) ‘granulation (prog) ‘Ammonia and carbon dioxide are heated together al 460 K ané 200 atm pressure. First ammonium carbamate formed, which rapidly ecomposes to form urea 2NHsla) + COslg) —> HyN-COF NHI (=) HN-CO-NH, + H:0(@) ‘Figure 5 An eral vow of larg pant in Albarta, Canada In which ammonia syntesized ‘yn pin of ar Much ofthe urea is piled (Fgure 6) and sold in that form. ‘Figure 6 These small spheres of urea are known il. The pis a formed by spraying melton rea down a tower up which iris pumped. They are ight salir than woe sold as granules and are parcuarty usta whan the fertzer ts tng applied by DR pinion ns Date last amended: 26th January 2017(hctanptapoastet htt Aninvitation Wie invite you to wite tous fyou have any specific comments about this sie, for example ‘errors that you have found, suggestions for new topics o for ading to the existing unis, suggestions for Inks to other sites and addons or alleratives to our examples. 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