Chemical Technology
Subject Code: CH2001
Module II-Lecture 2
Urea Production
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Urea Fertilizer
fertilizer urea
46-0-0
• Urea, also known as carbamide, is an organic compound with chemical formula
CO(NH2)2. This amide has two –NH2 groups joined by a carbonyl (C=O) functional
group.
• Dissolved in water, it is neither acidic nor alkaline.
• Urea is widely used in fertilizers as a source of nitrogen (N) and is an important raw
material for the chemical industry.
• It contains 46% nitrogen.
• Urea (carbamide), readily produced from ammonia and carbon dioxide, is a very important
chemical in the agricultural and the polymer industries.
• Urea itself also forms important resins.
Molar mass 60.056 g·mol−1
Appearance White solid
Density 1.32 g/cm3
Melting point 133 to 135 °C (271 to 275 °F; 406 to 408 K)
Solubility in water 1079 g/L (20 °C), 1670 g/L (40 °C), 2510 g/L (60 °C), 4000 g/L (80 °C)
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Physical form of Urea
• Prilled Urea Specifications
Total nitrogen 46% min
Biuret content 1% max
Moisture 0.5% max Particle
size 1-2.8 mm
• Granular Urea Specifications
Total nitrogen 46% min
Biuret content < 1%
Moisture < 0.5% Particle
size 2-4 mm
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Lecture notes links
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEz2nyHO3fA
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfIizOBI5wY
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzeo1dmKvuw
• Urea (NH2CONH2), which is also known as carbamide,
carbonyl diamine, carbamimidic acid, and isourea, was the
leading nitrogen fertilizer worldwide in the 1990s
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Urea process description
Raw Materials:
Ammonia (NH3)
Carbon dioxide (CO2) from synthesis gas
Ratio of NH3 and CO2 is 2:1, Temp: 170-
190 C, Pressure: 100-200 atm.
Direct reaction of ammonia with carbon
dioxide in a high pressure, high
temperature reactor. The average
residence time is 1.5-2 hours.
Dehydration of the carbamate to form a
melt of urea. The reaction takes place at
130-140 C and about 25-35 atm
pressure.5 The conversion is about 40%.
Process description
• This liquid effluent is let down to 27 atm and fed to a special flash-evaporator
containing a gas-liquid separator and condenser.
• Unreacted NH3, CO2 and H2O as a solution are thus removed and recycled. An
aqueous solution of carbamate-urea is passed to the atmospheric flash drum where
further decomposition of carbamate takes place.
• The off-gas from this step can either be recycled to sent to NH3 processes for making
chemical fertilizer.
• The 80% aqueous urea solution can be used as is or sent to a vacuum evaporator to
obtain molten urea containing less than 1% water. The molten mass is then sprayed
into a prilling or granular solidification tower.
• To avoid formation of biuret, the temperature must be kept just above the melting
point for processing times of 1-2 sec in this phase of the operation.
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Condition for a good yield
• CO2 should be free from oxygen and hydrogen.
• The ratio of NH3 and CO2 should be maintained.
• Preheating of ammonia is essential for good yield.
• Average reaction temperature (180 C) should be
controlled.
• Average pressure (150 bar) should be maintained
for a good yield of urea.
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Unit operation is urea plant
• Ammonia pumping: Liquid ammonia is pumped from the multistage pump which maintain
the reaction pressure in the vertical stainless steel vessel.
• Carbon dioxide compression: ammonia plant directly boost the carbon dioxide from the
compression section as it readily form at the CO2 section of ammonia production plant.
• Urea synthesis tower: It is lined with film of oxides to protect from corrosion. Catalyst bed
is placed in the inner side of the autoclave structure and 180- 200 atm pressure at
temperature about 180-200 deg centigrade is maintained. Plug flow operation take
places and molten urea is removed from the top of the tower.
• Distillation tower and Flash drum: This high pressure slurry is flashed to 1 atm pressure
and distilled to remove excess ammonia and decomposed ammonia carbamated salts are
removed and recycled
• Vacuum Evaporator: The solution is fed to vacuum evaporator for concentrating the slurry
• Prilling Tower: It is dryer where the molten slurry is passed from top of the tower into a
bucket which rotates and sprinkles the slurry and air is passed from the bottom. All the
moisture is removed as the urea form into granules during it journey to the bottom of the
tower. This granules are sent by conveyor to the bagging section.
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Prilling
• Molten urea that is almost anhydrous is forced through spray heads or spinner
buckets. The droplets of urea fall through a countercurrent stream of air in which
they solidify to form prills (pellets). This process has potentially greater pollution
problems due to the production of a large volume of air laden with very fine dust
that must be processed. Many recovery systems have been tried for this process,
but all with limited success.
Granulation
• Granulation is now superseding prilling as the method of choice for urea
solidification. In this process, granules are usually formed by the successively
spraying and drying (layering) of concentrated urea solution onto recycled
granules, in a rotating drum.
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Application of Urea Fertilizer
• Widely used in the agricultural sector both as a
fertilizer and animal feed additive.
• Provides the plants with nitrogen to promote
green leafy growth. • Makes the plants look lush
(fresh).
• Necessary for the photosynthesis of plants.
• Helps to develop stem and leaves at primary
stage of plants
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Advantages/Disadvantages of Urea Fertilizer
• Highest nitrogen content than other available nitrogenous fertilizers in the
market.
• The cost of production of urea is relatively low.
• Can be used for all types of crops and soils and has no harm to the soil.
• easy to store and does not pose as a fire risk for long-term storage.
• Urea manufacture releases few pollutants to the environment
• Highly soluble in water so requires better packaging quality.
• Not as stable as other solid nitrogenous fertilizers.
• Decomposes even at room temperatures that results in serious loss.
• If urea contains impurities more than 2 percent, it cannot be used as a
fertilizer, since the impurities are toxic.
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An Industrial Precursor
• It is a very important starting material for the manufacture of fertilisers,
pharmaceuticals and resins. For example, urea is one of the precursors to the various barbiturates,
which are widely used as sedatives and sleeping pills.
• Urea is also used in the production of urethanes, which are then polymerised to
form polyurethane foams.
• Urea can react with formaldehyde to make the urea-formaldehyde resins,
• Another product is, melamine, which is formed by the dehydration of urea, and
is used primarily in the production of melamine-formaldehyde resins which
have much greater hardness and stain resistance than urea-formaldehyde resins.
• Both of these types of polymer resin have very varied uses including adhesives,
laminates, moulding compounds, coatings and textile finishes.
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