SGL Group successfully rolls out major industrial process for recycling hydrogen chloride

Installation of a shell and tube heat exchanger made by SGL Carbon

Installation of a shell and tube heat exchanger made by SGL Carbon

At a glance:

  • Energy savings of up to 45% compared with existing processes
  • Patented process proves successful in practice at largest Chinese potassium producer Qinghai Salt Lake Industry Co., Ltd.

The recovery system for recycling and reusing hydrogen chloride (HCI) developed by SGL Group plays a major role in a new electrolytic smelting system from Chinese potassium producer Qinghai Salt Lake Industry Co., Ltd. (QSL). Successfully commissioned in the Chinese Province of Qinghai this year, the system produces magnesium with the lowest CO2 values worldwide – supported by the patented solution from SGL Group, which consumes up to 45 percent less energy compared with standard processes.

“We decided to develop our new system based on a demand for greater energy savings,” states Oliver Seidel, Head of Process Technology, a division of SGL Group’s Business Unit Graphite Materials & Systems. “Now that the QSL melting system has been commissioned, we are extremely pleased to be able to demonstrate that our process works on an industrial scale.”

QSL is the largest potassium producer in China, producing both salts and magnesium, which are chemically bonded to salt from the Qinghai salt lake. Hydrogen chloride (HCI) is used to separate the magnesium from the salt and then prepare it for further processing. The system part supplied by SGL Group treats the contaminated HCI and returns it to the main process. The overall system consists of columns, heat exchangers, pumps and tanks made of the proven high-quality materials DIABON® graphite and POLYFLURON® PTFE.

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