The expert noted that the production of industrial gas in Turkmenistan will be the next step towards a civilized international market.
At present Independent Turkmenistan successfully implements several large-scale innovative projects in the gas and petrochemical industry, which are of the utmost importance for the national economy and the integration of the state into the conjuncture of the world community.
Scientific expert of CentralAsia.news, a well-known Turkmen scientist, Doctor of Technical Sciences Allaberdy Ilyasov, assessed the potential of Turkmenistan in the production of industrial gas, and also described the real economic effect in the relevant direction.
What will Turkmenistan gain?
The production of industrial gas in Turkmenistan will be another step towards a civilized international market.
Any technological process requires certain expenditures of energy resources — electricity, water, steam, fuel, and technical gases. How the supply of production with each of the consumed resources is organized depends on whether the company will be able to achieve its goals in terms of production efficiency, the level of costs, and production costs, as well as ensuring the stability of work and production safety.
The solution to the issue of supplying production with technical gases, for example, nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen, in most cases lies in the plane of the organization of the corresponding products on the territory of the consumer enterprise.
From the outside, it may seem that the production of industrial gases is a costly and complex business. In reality, the task is easier than it seems. Of course, like any technological equipment, a gas-generating plant will require certain investments. And there are practically no difficulties in obtaining the necessary permits and approvals in the case of technical gases.
Use of technical gases
These substances are actively demanded by the industry. The largest consumer is metallurgy, it uses 17 percent of industrial gases and their mixtures.
Oxygen blasting speeds up blast furnace processes, saves coke, and produces excellent quality cast iron, as well as converting it into steel. Oxygen-enriched air, as well as pure oxygen, are necessary for the production of copper, nickel, and lead. Oxygen is also used by metallurgists to reduce emissions of waste gases and pollutants.
Nitrogen is used to protect ferrous and non-ferrous metals during annealing, neutral hardening, cyanidation, brazing, powder sintering, and blast furnace charging devices.
Argon is required in steel production for cleaning, degassing, and homogenizing. It is also used to create an inert and protective environment for melting, welding, and cutting metals and their alloys, such as stainless steel.
The chemical industry
In the chemical industry, practically all types of industrial gases are used. They serve as a raw material and working environment. This industry is the second-largest consumer of industrial gases and, as a result, cryogenic equipment.
Most of the nitrogen produced is used for the industrial production of ammonia, which is processed into nitric acid, explosives, and fertilizers.
The chemical industry uses a large number of containers with internal surfaces sensitive to oxidation, and nitrogen is also used to protect them. Nitrogen and argon are used in the storage of chemical raw materials. Oxygen serves as an oxidizing agent in many chemical reactions that underlie the production of chemical products.
Clean gases and mixtures are essential for this industry, also for laboratory research, control, and management of chemical reactions, environmental monitoring, and the detection of explosive concentrations.
Benefits for essential products
The food industry consumes a tenth of all industrial gases, although the area of their application is one of the youngest. To create an inert environment during the storage, handling, and packaging of various food products: dairy, meat, vegetables and fruits, juices, and much more, nitrogen is used. It makes it possible to abandon preservatives while increasing the shelf life and preserving the taste of the products.
Carbon dioxide is a raw material for the production of carbonated drinks, «dry ice» and baking powder. Hydrogen is used to hydrogenate fats in margarine production. The modern food industry uses a large number of liquid nitrogen refrigeration units.
Medicine and medicines
Medicine and pharmaceutical are also active consumers of various technical gases, for example, for supplying and ensuring the set parameters in cryogenic equipment. As a rule, medicine uses gases of high purity and cryogenic equipment of a high degree of reliability, since the use of industrial gases is related to ensuring the life of patients.
Oxygen and carbon dioxide in the form of breathing mixtures are used to stimulate and support the suppressed respiratory function.
Nitrogen serves as a coolant to transport the organs to the transplant site. Carbon dioxide in solid form or «dry ice», as well as carbon dioxide and other gases are used in cryomedicine — cold treatment, including cryosurgery. Healing baths with CO2 dissolved in them, as well as mineralized drinks have a healing effect on the body. Nitrogen is required for pharmaceutical packaging, purging, and cleaning of pharmaceutical equipment.
Oil and gas industry
The use of nitrogen in oil and gas production has received a surge along with coiled tubing technology for good completion. Injection of gaseous nitrogen from a nitrogen unit is the most promising way to reduce the level of bottom-hole pressure, which ensures the simplicity and reliability of the process control over a wide range.
In addition, nitrogen is used for good workover; cleaning tanks for storage and transportation of natural gas; purging, pressure testing, and testing of systems and pipelines. It is also used before installation, repair, routine inspections, for cleaning containers from explosive vapors, for conservation and emergency work on pipelines, as protection against explosions and fires, including oil and gas, as well as when extinguishing fires in mines, formations, and enclosed spaces.
Universal characteristics
In addition, carbon dioxide in certain concentrations enhances the growth of agricultural plants, therefore it is used in greenhouses.
The production of nanophotonics products, computer devices and other complex devices based on integrated circuits requires the use of ultrapure so-called «electronic» gases — nitrogen, helium, hydrogen, krypton, xenon, and gas mixtures based on them.
Helium is a unique refrigerant in experimental physics that makes it possible to use ultra-low temperatures in the study of superconductivity and other properties of materials and media. Also, balloons and air balloons, gas balloons of various configurations are filled with helium.
In the production of varnishes and paints, nitrogen is used to prevent the polymerization of products, purge technological equipment, and package goods.
The advertising and entertainment industry uses neon to create luminous signs and other promotional items.
Environmental purposes
Several solutions for the environment and wastewater treatment that allow reducing the volume of emissions of harmful substances into water and air to an acceptable level have been developed. These technologies are a cost-effective way to improve the efficiency of existing wastewater treatment systems.
The high rate of oxygen transfer and a decrease in its chemical consumption makes it possible to increase the productivity of treatment facilities, reduce the intensity of odors and foaming, and purify wastewater with a high concentration of pollutants.
