Praxair Technology, Inc.

Antonio Augusto Velloso

Matthew Lincoln Wagner

Diego Fernandez Echegaray

A process is described for producing nitric acid involving oxidizing ammonia gas to form dinitrogen tetroxide gas, reacting the dinitrogen tetroxide with water in an absorption zone to form aqueous nitric acid and nitric oxide gas, removing a nitric acid/nitric oxide stream from the absorption zone and feeding the stream into a nitric acid bleaching zone, removing impurities from the nitric acid in the bleaching zone to form nitric acid product and adding supplemental oxygen gas to one or more of the reaction streams to increase nitric acid production and or strength. The improvement involves injecting the supplemental oxygen into a nitric acid-containing process stream to form a gas bubble/liquid mixture in the stream, the mixture forming a fine dispersion of gas bubbles having diameters of less than about 0.1 mm. According to the invention, increased interfacial surface is created between the gas bubbles and the liquid mixture to facilitate removal of impurities from the liquid phase and shifting of the reaction.

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Salvador, Brazil

Antonio Augusto Velloso