H2S and Mercaptans
About hydrogen sulfide and mercaptan
- Hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans are highly toxic, have an unpleasant odor and are highly volatile, which increases the likelihood of human exposure.
- Their presence in oil and gas condensates creates environmental problems.
- Hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans cause corrosion of pipelines and storage systems during transportation and processing of hydrocarbons.
- Hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans are water-soluble and create problems when treating wastewater from tanks and EDP units during oil refining.
For environmentally and technologically safe storage, transportation and processing of hydrocarbons, hydrogen sulfide content should be treated to below 10 ppm, and from mercaptans to below 20 ppm.
The most effective methods of treatment of hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans are:
- For large oil and gas fields, liquid-phase oxidation-catalytic treatment technologies for hydrocarbon feedstock.
- For treatment of small-scale volumes of feedstock, neutralization of hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans by dosing scavenger reagents based on MEA-Triazine.