USA-based KBR to License Technology for Hanwha new Nitric Acid Plant in South Korea

In a recent announcement, the USA headquartered world-class technology provider, KBR Inc. declared its yet another achievement on bagging the contract for providing a dual-pressure Nitric Acid production technology to Hanwha Corporation’s new facility at Yeosu, South Korea. The Nitric Acid plant will be having an annual production capacity of 1200 tonnes.

KBR with its shining history of delivering 76 Nitric Acid plants across the world, will be responsible for giving out the license, engineering design and troubleshooting / technical support services to Hanwha Corporation. KBR proudly proclaims its dual-pressure technology to exhibit CAPEX and OPEX benefits powered by optimal energy consumption resulting from maximum energy recovery.

Nitric Acid, also referred to as aqua fortis, is an extremely corrosive mineral acid that tends to decompose into the water, nitrogen dioxide and oxygen under the prolonged effect of light. Industrially, Nitric Acid is prepared from platinum catalysed oxidation of ammonia. Nitric Acid is primarily used as a raw material for the preparation of industrially important compounds like ammonium nitrate, calcium ammonium nitrate, TNT, nitrobenzene, adipic acid etc., that are exploited in a wide range of sectors including fertilizers, explosives, inks and dyes, pharmaceuticals, aerospace etc.

As per ChemAnalyst, the global Nitric Acid market is on the rise due to its extensive usage (over 80% of the total global production) as feedstocks in the fertilizer industries. The demand for Nitric Acid is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of over 4.5% by 2030. With this contract, KBR Inc. will continue to dominate the global market as a world leader for proprietary technology development. The capacity addition of Nitric Acid in South Korea is expected to cater to its demand in the end-user industries in Asia which represents a pivotal market for Nitric Acid consumption. The impact of greater Nitric Acid supplies will extend to the Nitric Acid prices which are not likely to escalate much in the future.