Chemistry Reference
In-Depth Information
metal salts
others
11%
fertilisers 2%
4%
other uses
19.5%
domestic
11%
steel
manufacture
1.5%
chemicals
21%
dyes
5.5%
power
stations
60%
industry
18%
artificial
fibres
6%
paints and
pigments
19%
plastics 2.5%
detergents
19%
Figure 12.5
Sources of sulfur dioxide.
Nitric acid (HNO
3
) in the atmosphere, formed from
NO
2
gas dissolving in the rainwater, also contributes
to the production of acid rain.
Questions
1
How could the amount of sulfur dioxide being produced by
the above sources be reduced?
2
Devise an experiment which you could carry out in the
school laboratory to determine the amount of sulfur in two
different types of coal.
●
Sulfuric acid
Industrial manufacture of sulfuric
acid - the Contact process
The major use of sulfur is in the production of
sulfuric acid. This is probably the most important
industrial chemical, and the quantity of it produced
by a country has been linked with the economic
stability of the country. In excess of 150 million
tonnes of sulfuric acid are produced worldwide each
year. It is used mainly as the raw material for the
production of many substances (Figure 12.6).
The process by which sulfuric acid is produced is
known as the
Contact process
(Figure 12.7).
Figure 12.6
Products made from sulfuric acid include detergents, paints
and pigments.
