Potassium sulfate preparation technology is mature and the industry has good development prospects

Potassium sulfate, also known as white garri, is an inorganic salt composed of sulfate ions and potassium ions, with the chemical formula K2SO4. Potassium sulfate appears as a white crystalline powder, easily soluble in water, but insoluble in carbon disulfide, acetone and ethanol. Potassium sulfate is also a high-concentration, fast-acting potassium fertilizer with the advantages of good water solubility, low hygroscopicity, and difficulty in caking, and is suitable for various soils.

The main raw materials of potassium sulfate are potassium chloride and sulfuric acid. Affected by factors such as relatively scarce potassium resources, my country’s potassium chloride supply is relatively scarce and production continues to decline. In 2021, my country’s total potassium chloride output reached 6.524 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 18.6%. As an important chemical material, the output of sulfuric acid has maintained a steady growth trend for a long time. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, my country’s sulfuric acid production will reach 9,000 tons in 2021. A year-on-year increase of 1.6%. The tight supply of raw materials has caused the price of potassium sulfate in my country to continue to increase. According to the “2022-2027 Potassium Sulfate Industry In-depth Market Research and Investment Strategy Suggestions Report released by the Industrial Research Center, in 2022 In August, the price of potassium sulfate in my country was 4821.6 yuan/ton, a year-on-year increase of 12.3%.

The main preparation processes of potassium sulfate include gypsum conversion method, Mannheim method, ammonium sulfate conversion method, Glauber’s salt conversion method, etc. The Mannheim process requires placing sulfuric acid and potassium chloride in a Mannheim furnace for reaction, releasing a large amount of heat energy through combustion, and then stirring to fully absorb the heat energy by sulfuric acid and potassium chloride, and finally produce potassium sulfate. The Mannheim process has the advantages of high potassium recovery rate and good product quality, and is currently the mainstream process for preparing potassium sulfate. As the Mannheim process gradually develops and matures, my country’s potassium sulfate production has increased. In 2021, my country’s potassium sulfate output was 2.967 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 2.9%.

Potassium sulfate is mainly used in agriculture, medicine, dyes, glass and other fields. In the agricultural field, potassium sulfate is a high-concentration, fast-acting potassium fertilizer. my country is a large agricultural country with rich types of crops and a large planting area, and has a strong demand for agricultural potassium fertilizers. Potassium sulfate has the advantages of good water solubility, fast absorption, and high potassium/sulfur content. It can improve the stress resistance of crops, increase soil nutrients, and accelerate crop growth. Driven by application demand, the development scale of my country’s potassium sulfate industry continues to expand. .

With the gradual implementation of the policy of abolishing export tariffs on potassium fertilizers, my country’s potassium sulfate exports have increased significantly. According to statistics from the General Administration of Customs of China, my country’s potassium sulfate exports reached US$115.95 million in 2021; imports reached US$21.810 million. Mexico, Peru and Iran are my country’s main exporters of potassium sulfate.

Industry analysts said that potassium sulfate has excellent performance and is in strong demand in the agricultural field as a quick-acting potassium fertilizer. With the rapid development of my country’s agriculture, sulfuric acid Potassium will gain broad market space. At present, my country’s potassium sulfate production technology is relatively mature and output continues to increase. Driven by the national export tariff policy, my country’s potassium sulfate export scale continues to expand, and the industry has good development prospects.