Desulfurization ordesulphurisation is a chemical process for the removal ofsulfur from a material.[1] The term usually refers to the removal of sulfur from a molecule or a material byhydrogenolysis:[2]
Hydrogen is the ultimate sulfur acceptor. As applied tooil refinery streams, the conversion is known ashydrodesulfurization. These processes are of industrial and environmental importance as they provide the bulk of sulfur used in industry (Claus process andContact process), sulfur-free compounds that could otherwise not be used in a great number ofcatalytic processes, and also reduce the release of harmful sulfur compounds into the environment.
A laboratory scale hydrogenolysis is the desulfurization of thioketals byRaney nickel. In such cases, the hydrogen is contained within the reagent.
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Desulfurization without hydrogenolysis is uncommon. Some trithiocarbonates can be coupled by desulfurization withphosphites or phosphines as S-atom acceptors. This approach has been described by the following equation:[3]
Other processes used for desulfurization includehydrodesulfurization, theSNOX process and thewet sulfuric acid process (WSA process).
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