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A new advanced technology H2S Analyser has been developed by Seta Analytics to determine the propensity of marine fuel to release entrained Hydrogen sulphide (H2S).

Hydrogen sulphide gas has acute short-term toxicity to humans, animals and aquatic life. There is heightened concern regarding the risks posed by H2S in marine fuel and the industry is currently reviewing the need to include mandatory H2S measurement in fuel specifications.

Testing marine fuel for H2S content allows critical assessment of a fuel’s safety when being stored and transported; also its potential to corrode pipelines, storage tanks and other ship components which may cause operability problems, including engine breakdown.

Significant concentrations of H2S are known to accumulate in the headspaces of storage tanks and marine fuel bunker cargoes which pose a serious and potentially lethal hazard.

Some marine residual fuel cargoes may be innocuous when initially loaded but can evolve and produce dangerous levels of hydrogen sulphide in the vapour space during transit. H2S gas can accumulate as a result of storage time, elevated temperature, agitation, biotic/chemical decomposition and others factors to which the fuel may be exposed.

The industry currently adopts test method IP 399 for determination of H2S in marine fuel and refinery feedstock for marine blends, however this traditional test only measures the amount of H2S present in a fuel sample and will not always determine its propensity to release H2S during storage or transport.

In addition IP 399 is a wet chemistry method with a 2 to 3 hour test duration meaning results may only be available after a vessel has put to sea; high demurrage costs may also result whilst ships are quarantined on the terminal berth waiting for IP 399 cargo test reports. As a consequence, IP 399 is currently under review and the marine fuels industry has requested improved analytical technology, suitable for field analysis which can be considered for inclusion in revised fuel specifications.

Lloyd's Register's ‘Fuel Oil and Bunker Analysis Service’ (FOBAS) provide independent verification of fuel quality against international standards and environmental legislation and have been a primary campaigner for the development of the new H2S Analyser. This important industry group reviews best practice requirements for the bunker industry, including improved product safety standards, reduced risk and insurance liabilities.

The H2S Analyser uses advanced integrated analytical sensor technology which is said to remove operator subjectiveness and gives reliable, rapid and precise measurements.

"The instrument offers a cost-effective solution for H2S measurement involving no expensive chemicals or the need for analytical test preparations by a trained laboratory technician. Its very fast repeat measurement capability offers a much improved means of assessing required remediation treatment of feedstock components and off-spec fuel products."

In operation, a sample of fuel is mixed with a proprietary diluent whilst being heated at 60°C to maximise solubility and optimise release of the entrained H2S. The sample is purged with air at a fixed flow rate and the liberated H2S passes over a proprietary H2S selective sensor which equates the volume of gas detected as a millivolt output, this value being reported as the H2S content. The instrument can detect over the range of sub 2ppm to 200ppm (or 2-200mg/kg) and total test duration from sample introduction to result takes less than 15 minutes.

According to SetaAnalytics, a leading oil refiner that is currently using the H2S Analyser says: "We are now able to run H2S determination tests in our laboratory and no longer need to outsource IP 399 tests and wait for results. This means improved/shorted tank turnover time and product release. In addition we now have better control of production operations, for example being more easily able to identify bad actors in our blending streams. Also better control of our H2S ‘scavenging’ by being able to test multiple samples in a short test time which allows us to fine tune the use of additives in our products. This ability represents significant potential cost savings."

A new IP industry round robin has been completed and IP 570 method ‘Determination of Hydrogen Sulfide in Fuel Oil – Rapid Liquid Phase Extraction Method’ is now available.

The EI Research Study report for this method is available online at the Energy Institute website at the following address:

www.energyinst.org.uk/content/files/IP_570-2009_RR_Research_Report.pdf

The H2S Analyser fully complies with IP 570 method and has also been designed to allow monitoring of refinery feedstock components prior to fuel blending. It will also analyse heating oil, gas oil, diesel, distillate marine fuels and kerosene, including aviation fuels.

SetaAnalytics are a business division of Stanhope-Seta and provide long established experience of testing petroleum products with the latest in measurement technologies to bring enhanced analytical solutions for hydrocarbon exploration, refining, distribution and marketing operations.

For further information please contact SetaAnalytics directly using the contact details below:

Caroline Morrison
Marketing Manager
SetaAnalytics
Tel: + 44 1932 564391
Fax: + 44 1932 568363
Email: marketing@stanhope-seta.co.uk
Web: www.seta-analytics.com