ELEMENTAL ANALYSIS OF SULFUR-CONTAINING MATERIALS

• US 3,838,969 A
• Filed: 05/02/1973
• Issued: 10/01/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 05/02/1973
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: George Dugan
• Original Assignee: George Dugan
• Inventors: Dugan, George
• Primary Examiner(s): Serwin, R. E.
• Application Number:
  US05/356,642
• Time in Patent Office: 517 Days
• Field of Search: 23/23PC,253PC,232,254,255
• US Class Current: 436/115
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 31/005 investigating the presence of an element by oxidation G01N31/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/176921 As part of an elemental analysis
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/188 Total or elemental sulfur
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/22 Hydrogen, per se
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/23 Carbon containing

Abstract

An improvement in the elemental analysis of sulfur-containing materials to provide quantative determination of the sulfur content. In a preferred embodiment the elemental analysis of a material to determine its carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and sulfur content by oxidizing, at elevated temperatures, a sample of the material to convert the carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and sulfur present in this material to carbon dioxide, water, oxides of nitrogen and oxides of sulfur respectively; passing the resulting mixture of gaseous oxidation products and unreacted oxygen through a reduction zone containing copper at elevated temperatures to reduce the oxides of nitrogen to nitrogen, to convert any sulfur trioxide present to sulfur dioxide, and to remove the unreacted oxygen; passing the resulting mixture of carbon dioxde, water, nitrogen and sulfur dioxide through a separating column and into a detector to quantitatively measure each of the carbon dioxide, water, nitrogen and sulfur dioxide present in the gaseous oxidation product mixture; and calculating the quantity of each of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and sulfur present in the original material; is improved by maintaining the reduction zone at temperatures above about 800*C.

Claims

1. OXIDIZING AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES A SAMPLE OF THE MATERIAL TO BE ANALYZED TI CONVERT THE CARBON, HYDROOGEN, NITROGEN AND SULFUR PRESENT IN THE COMPOUND TO CARBON DIOXIDE, WATER, OXIDES OF NITROGEN AND OXIDES OF SULFUR, RESPECTIVELY,

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the reduction zone is maintained at temperatures between about 800*C. and 850*C.

3. passing the resulting mixture of carbon dioxide, water, nitrogen and sulfur dioxide into a detector to quantitatively measure each of the carbon dioxide, water, nitrogen and sulfur dioxide in the gaseous oxidation product mixture;

and

4. CALCULATING THE PERCENTAGE OF EACH OF CARBON, HYDROGEN, NITROGEN AND SULFUR PRESENT IN THE ORGANAL SAMPLE, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES MAINTAINING THE REDUCTION ZONE AT TEMPERATURES BETWEEN ABOUT 800*C. AND 1,075*C.