3.

CARBON DISULPHIDE PLANT

3.1 Introduction
Carbon disuphide is a colourless, volatile, highly inflammable liquid with a
chemical formula of CS2. The compound is an important reagent in chemical
and textile industries and is frequently used as a building block of various
organic compounds. It acts as a highly popular non-polar solvent for various
substances. It has characteristic “ether-like” odour when pure but the
commercial sample has foul-smelling contaminations. Carbon disulphide is
heavier than water and is slightly soluble in it.
CS2 chemically has a linear, symmetrical structure with the carbon atom at the
centre sharing double bonds with the sulphur atoms on both sides with each
bond having a bond length of 155.26 pm. Carbon disulphide is highly
inflammable and reacts vigorously and exothermically with air (oxygen)
releasing carbon dioxide and suphur dioxide. It acts as solvent for substances
such as phosphorus, sulphur, selenium, bromine, iodine, fats, resins, rubber and
asphalt. Upon polymerization, under high pressure and photolysis, it
polymerizes to “Bridgeman’s black”, which is a semiconductor.

Fig-3.1: The bond structure of

carbon disulphide.

At Kesoram Rayon, they produce carbon disulphide by the primitive method of

reacting sulphur with charcoal at elevated temperatures of 750oC to 1000oC in
reaction furnace, which is energised electrically. The resulting Carbon
disulphide is contaminated chiefly with unreacted sulphur, hydrogen sulphide
and moisture, which is stored and later purified. A modern technique, however,
involves a low temperature reaction occurring around 600oC. In that method,
natural gas, mainly methane is used a carbon source is made to react with
molten sulphur in presence of silica gel and alumina catalysts.
3.2 Production process.
At Kesoram Rayon, carbon disulphide is produced in electric furnaces. There
are a total of five furnaces amongst which only one remain functional at a
particular time. When a specific furnace exhausts its supply of charcoal
resulting in reduced production it is stopped and a fresh furnace is started. The
furnace, which is discontinued, is later clean for future use.

3.2.1 Production:
RAW MATERIALS: Molten sulphur & Calcined charcoal.
REACTION: C + 2S CS2
 The imported commercial charcoal is fed to a calciner in which the
charcoal is heated and then it is spurged with excess air to remove ash,
volatile matter and moisture from it.
 Calcined coal is passed through a rotary spin drum having a perforated
wall, which separates smaller pieces of charcoal. The pieces of desirable
size are collected in a hopper.

Fig-3.2: The rotary spin drum for calcined charcoal.

 The collected charcoal is fed to the furnace using overhead crane. In

inner surface of the furnace contains two layers of firebricks to withstand
the high temperatures, followed by three layers of ordinary bricks and
finally a metal casing lined with a layer of insulating material. Internally,
the furnace contains two graphite electrodes, one at the top and another at
the bottom.
 The power supply to the plant is high voltage and low current supply and it
is stepped down, using a step-down transformer to a low voltage and high
current supply. An amplified current supply to the electrodes enhances the
heat production between the electrodes by several folds.

Fig-3.3: The furnace. Fig-3.4: The sulphur distributor.

 The vacant space between the electrodes is filled with calcined charcoal.
Calcined charcoal being a good conductor of electricity completes the circuit
and gets heated up due to the passage of high ampere current.
 Molten sulphur is distributed using a distributor through eight different inlet
points on the furnace wall into it.
 With the introduction of molten sulphur, reaction happens instantaneously.
This reaction involves a solid and a liquid reactant forming a gas and thus
proceeds with an enormous increase in volume resulting in high pressure
build up within the furnace. To check this there are two purging lines,
originating from the head of the furnace, guarded by asbestos sheets, which
remain closed under ordinary gaseous pressure and is blasted during the
abnormally high pressure purging the excess gasses and protecting the
furnace.
 The yields gaseous carbon disulphide, hydrogen sulphide, water vapour and
unreacted sulphur. This mixture is sent to sulphur removal unit and the gas
from its outlet is send to two-stage condenser, one operating at 12 ℃ and the
other at 8℃, yielding liquid carbon disulphide which contains the above
said impurities.
3.2.2 Storage of CS2:
The impure sulphur from the CS2 plant is sent to the storage section where the
liquid is stored in tanks under water. Whenever the liquid is to be ejected from
the tanks water pressure is used to push and release the underlying liquid
through a purge line. The tanks store water above carbon disulphide because it
is heavier than water and to keep the temperature of the volatile and
inflammable liquid as low as possible to avoid accidents. The tanks in turn are
laid in pool of cool water to further reduce any possibility of accidental ignition.
The method of storage is same for both impure and pure carbon disulphide. The
tanks are symbolically numbered to indicate whether the tank stores impure or
pure CS2. Carbon disulphide from the storage unit is sent to the purification unit
to remove the major impurities in the liquid before changeling it to the units in
the textile section, which accept purified carbon disulphide as a raw material.

Fig-3.5: The storage tanks of CS2.

3.2.3 Purification of CS2:
The stored, impure carbon disulphide is channelized to the purification unit. The
impure CS2 is extracted from the storage tanks by water pressure to ensure it is
not exposed to atmosphere keeping in mind its explosive nature. Carbon
disulphide having a higher specific gravity than is stored below water in tanks.
The impure CS2 is fed to a distillation column. The distillation column
employed for the purpose is a special one because it consists of only the
rectifying section. Internally, the column is longitudinally divided into two
section. At the bottom of the column a steam coil is fitted through which steam
is passed when heating is required.
The impure CS2 is fed through one section descends through that section up to
the steam coil where it gets heated by steam and evaporates. The vapours of
pure CS2 passes into the other section and rises through it. The fumes of
impurities remain in the feeding section and do not with pure vapours of carbon
disulphide in the adjoining section.
The pure vapour rises through its section and is passed into a condenser
maintained at a temperature of 7℃ to 8℃, where it forms the liquid. The liquid
is sent to the storage tanks. The gases from the feeding section is rich in
hydrogen sulphide and is sent to the gasholder tank where it is stored to act as a
feed to the sulphur recover y plant.

Fig-3.6: The distillation Fig-3.7: The two-stage condenser

column of purification unit. for pure CS2.
3.3. Recovery of Sulphur:
At Kesoram Rayon, a separate unit dedicated only to recover sulphur from the
H2S gas produced in furnaces of CS2 plant, is present and operational. Here, the
“KLAUS KILN” process is used to recover sulphur from H2S gas. In this
process, H2S gas coming as a by-product from CS2 furnaces is collected in a gas
holder. From gas holder gas is led to gas burner furnace system at a constant
pressure through a seal where H2S gas is partially burnt in presence of air, as
given in the reaction –
2H2S + 3O2 2SO2 + 2H2O
From gas burner gases (H2S & SO2) are fed to a catalytic convertor wherein
presence of bauxite catalyst following reaction takes place:
SO2 + 2H2S  3S (vapour) + 2H2O
(vapour)
Sulphur vapour are condensed in a condenser and collected in a pit from where
the sulphur is transferred. From condenser left over gases are passed through
sulphur separator where remaining sulphur, if any, is removed.
Remaining water vapour, H2S & SO2 traces are sent to tail gas tower where
gases are further scrubbed before venting in the atmosphere through chimney.

Fig-3.8: The catalytic convertor. Fig-3.9: The scrubber fitted

with a venting chimney.
 BLOCK DIAGRAM: Sulphur Recovery Plant.

AIR 20 TO 60 MM WC

H2S GAS FURNACE &

FROM CS2 GAS HOLDER GAS SEAL
FURNACE H2S H 2S
BURNER
GAS PRESSURE GAS PRESSURE
50 TO 130 MM WC 50 TO 130 MM WC
TEMPERATURE
280℃ TO 650℃

H2S
CATALYTIC +
CONDENSER CONVERTOR SO2
S + H2O + (H2S + O2) +
PRESSURE IN TRACES PRESSURE O2
10 TO 40 MM WC 20 TO 60 MM WC
TEMPERATURE TEMPERATURE
SO2 +
150℃ TO 250℃ 400℃ TO 525℃
O2 +
H2S

IN 140℃ TO 180℃
TRACES

SULPHUR
SEPARATOR
120℃ TO 8 TO 10 CHIMNEY
PRESSURE 150 ℃ SCRUBBER MM WC
10 TO 30 MM WC (To discharge
TEMPERATURE 10 to 20 MM WC the residual
110℃ TO 150℃ gases)
3.4. Uses of the product:
3.4.1. General Uses:
The principal industrial uses of carbon disulphide, consuming 75% of the
annual production, are the manufacture of viscose rayon and cellophane film. It
is also valued intermediate in chemical synthesis of carbon tetrachloride. It is
widely used in the production of organosulphur compounds such as metam
sodium, xanthates, dithiocarbamates, which are used in extractive metallurgy
and rubber chemistry.

3.4.2 Niche uses:

It can be used in fumigation of air tight storage warehouses, air tight flat
storages, bins, grain elevators, railroad box cars, shipholds, barges and cereal
mills. Carbon disulphide is also used as an insecticide for the fumigation of
grains, nursery stock, in fresh fruit conservation and as a soil disinfectant
against insects and nematodes.

3.5 Health effects:

Carbon disulphide is highly toxic. It has been linked to both acute and chronic
forms of poisoning. To identify the effects of carbon disulphide, it is necessary
to confirm exposure, compatible signs and symptoms, and exclude other health
conditions, as its effects are non-specific. Typical recommended value of safety
upon exposure is 10 ppm. Symptoms include tingling or numbness, cramps,
muscle weakness, pain, distal sensory loss and neurophysiological impairment.
Occupational exposure of CS2 is associated with cardiovascular diseases, in
particular, stroke.