Cheap ionic liquid desulfurization technology product 

Cheap desulfurization technology using the ionic liquid method, the product is not a marketing slogan, but the result of three years of work at industrial plants in Sichuan and Shaanxi. We launched it at oil refineries with a sulfur content of 12–18 g/kg in diesel fuel. Where traditional methods required 3.5 MPa pressure and 320°C, our system operated at 0.3 MPa and 45°C. Energy consumption fell by 68%. This is not a theory - this is data from the control panel.

Why “cheap” is not an exaggeration, but a calculation

The cost of desulfurization does not consist of the price of the reagent, but of the total costs: capital investments, energy, maintenance, product losses. Ionic liquids (ILs) are indeed more expensive than zinc adsorbents per kilogram. But their resource is 120 regeneration cycles without loss of activity. In one of the projects in Gansu, we replaced a hydrotreating unit with an 80 t/d IL desulfurization module. Capital costs decreased by 41%, payback period - 14 months. The main factor: the lack of hydrogen, compressors, furnaces and H₂S recovery systems.

Working with customers, we identify three typical calculation errors:

• Taking into account only the purchase price of IL, without taking into account the cost of regeneration equipment;
• Application of a coefficient of 1.0 for oil product losses - real losses during the IL process are 0.12–0.27% (versus 0.8–1.5% during hydrotreating);
• Ignoring the cost of raw material preparation - IL does not require preliminary stabilization or water removal.

Our engineers always include in the feasibility study a comparison table for 11 parameters: from installation area to SO₂ emission standards. Cheap desulfurization technology using the ionic liquid method, the product becomes exactly where all cost items are taken into account.

Not a one-size-fits-all solution, but a precision tool

Some believe that IL will replace hydrotreating everywhere. This is not true. We abandoned such applications back in 2016, when the first pilot module in Chongqing failed to cope with the vacuum gas oil fraction with an asphaltene content above 4.2%. IL is effective when processing light fractions: gasoline, kerosene, diesel, APG and flammable liquid fractions. Its strength is the selective extraction of mercaptans and sulfides without hydrogenation of olefins. This preserves the octane number of gasoline and the cetane number of diesel.

Key restrictions that we honestly indicate to clients:

• The temperature of the incoming raw material should not exceed 65°C (otherwise the viscosity of the IL decreases and the risk of emulsification increases);
• The water content in the raw materials is no more than 50 ppm (higher - pre-drying is required);
• The maximum sulfur concentration in the starting product is 5000 ppm for diesel and 1500 ppm for gasoline (if exceeded, two-stage treatment is required).

These are not shortcomings of the technology - these are its limits of applicability. Just as scissors do not replace a hammer, IL does not replace the catalytic purification of heavy fractions. But in its niche it works more reliably and cheaper.

How to choose a real product - not a sample, but a solution

At exhibitions we are often asked: “Do you have IL for sulfur?” Our answer is, “We have a solution for your specific feedstock, your load, and your sulfur goals.” The product is not a bottle of liquid. This is a complex: a selected IL with a given cation (usually imidazolium) and anion (Cl⁻, BF₄⁻ or [Tf₂N]⁻), a regeneration unit with pH and humidity control, a real-time viscosity control system, calibration protocols and documentation in Russian.

We do not sell “universal IL”. We conduct a free trial analysis of 3 liters of your raw materials. In 10 days - a report with recommendations: what composition of IL is suitable, what degree of purification is achievable, what modifications to the existing line will be required. In 76% of cases, clients implement the solution without changing the technological map. In the rest, we make minimal changes: we add one heat exchanger or adjust the supply mode.

The technology of desulfurization using the ionic liquid method becomes a cheap product when you pay not for the chemistry, but for the result: a stable sulfur content of ≤10 ppm in diesel with an IL consumption of 1.8 kg per ton of raw material and a service life of 120 cycles.

The future lies in hybrid circuits and digital control

We are currently testing the IL block as a final stage after hydrotreating. This approach reduces the load on the main installation, extends the service life of the catalyst and produces fuel with a sulfur content of <1 ppm - the requirements of the Euro-6+ environmental standard. Digitalization adds a new level of control: viscosity sensors, online spectrometers and algorithms for predicting IL degradation make it possible to move from planned to event-based regeneration.

Chengdu Yizhi Technology Co., Ltd. does not create universal solutions. We design specific answers to specific production challenges. If your goal is to reduce the cost of desulfurization without loss of quality, if you are ready to work with data and not with promises, we have a proven path. It starts not with a contract, but with the analysis of your sample.