Imperial Chemical Industries Limited

Peter John Herbert Carnell

Edwin Stephen Willis

A process for the purification of a fluid stream containing a sulphur contaminant, such as hydrogen sulphide, and mercury, phosphine, stibine, and/or arsenic compounds as a second contaminant wherein said fluid stream is passed through a bed of a particulate absorbent containing a sulphide of a variable valency metal, especially copper, that is more electropositive than mercury, to remove said second contaminant and then the sulphur contaminant is removed from at least part of the effluent from that bed by passing that part of the effluent through a bed of a particulate sulphur absorbent comprising a compound selected from oxides, hydroxides, carbonates and basic carbonates of said variable valency metal is disclosed. The removal of the sulphur contaminant converts said variable valency metal compound to the corresponding sulphide. The resulting bed of variable valency metal sulphide is subsequently used for the removal of the second contaminant.

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Stockton on Tees, United Kingdom

Peter John Herbert Carnell