PRODUCTION DIFFICULTIES AT THE SOVIET-BUILT UREA PLANT AT SHCHEKINO CHEMICAL COMBINE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80T00246A031500060001-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 17
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: April 21, 2014
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: April 3, 1964
• Content Type: REPORT

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INFORMATION REPORT INFORMATION REPORT
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
This material contains information affecting the National Defense of the United States within the meaning of the Ern. sy LOWE>, 11.1,1C
18, U.S.C. Secs. 793 and 794, the transmission or revelation of which in any manner to an unauthorized person is bite(cnY1 _I-4 I im
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S-E-C-R-E-T
COUNTRY USSR (Tula Oblast)
REPORT
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SUBJECT Production Difficulties at the DATE DISTR. ,.._' April 1964
Soviet-Built Urea Plant at
,,,---,'-- s5hchekino Chemical Combin NO.PAGES 2
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REFERENCES
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INFO.
PLACE &
DATE ACQ.
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THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION. SOURCE GRADINGS ARE DEFINITIVE. APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE.
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1. A six-page translation of a report on production difficulties
encountered at the Soviet-built urea plant at Shchekino, near
Tula
Nine sketches, including a diagram of theaDo -HUM
Shchekino chemical combine and several process diagrams, are
included with the report.
2. The Soviet plant, built after the American CHEMICO process, is
calculated to produce 400 tons of urea per day; so far no eight-
hour prills have been made but technical grade crystalline urea
has been produced.1,2 Of the four units set up within the plant,
two do not operate at all, one operates off and on and one
operates constantly; however, ,production at the neighboring
Dutch-built urea plant was adversely affected whenever the
second unit at the Soviet plant was put into operation.
3. Soviet requests for help from the Dutch in solving these problems
have met with little enthusiasm or success. Soviet design
engineers are now studying the Dutch-built plant in detail;
presumably the Soviets intend to alter their plant themselves
according to the Dutch process.
Comments:
1.
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construction of a small urea
plant by the Soviets themselves at the Shchekino Chemical
Combine was begun in mid-1961. It was planned ?that the
plant would begin production on 1 January 1963 and that50X1 -HUM
production would be 50 to 75 tons per day.
STATE I DIA I ARMY I NAVY I AIR I NSA
1XIX NIC
!Exclude! GROUPf rom I
auto atic 2
downgrading and
declassification
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the Soviet urea plant at
Shchekino beganAproddction On il-Tebruary 1963.: It was
prodUcing technical urea at:'15 percept of its full capacity
of 140 tons per day. The process used was of Japanese
origin.
Distribution of Attachment:
1016V
ORR - Retention (1 copy w/o sketches) (transmitted direct)
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Country: USSR
Subject: Production Difficulties at
.Soviet Urea Plant at Shchekino
Chemical Combine
Date of
Info
Place
and Date
Acquired:
47*--
Attachtent
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1. The Soviet urea plant at the Shchekino chemical combine
obviously was built after the American CHEMICO process.
2.
3.
5
Czech compressors and reactors had been installed.
The loca-
tion of the plant and the estimated dimensions are given
in attachments 1, 3 and 4. A key to these attachments is
in para II below.
the
plant is calculated to produce 400 tons of urea per day.
In the total no eight-hour prills had been made but tech-
nical grade crystalline urea had been produced.
four units had been set up in the plant.
two units were not at all in
operation yet while one of the other units operated off and
on and the remaining one operated constantly. Production
in this last'Unit, -However, alsb was experiencing difficul-
ties. See attachment 2 for which the key is in para 11-below.
this plant took CO2 and
NH3 from the Soviet NH3 synthesis but that this installa-
tion supplied too little CO2 for both plants, since the
production in the Dutch plant fell behind about 50 tons
a day whenever the second unit in 'the Soviet plant was in
operation. several times in the Dutch plant
the production fell behind because of lack of CO2 but
the Soviets were expanding their NH3 syn-
thesis so that it can be expected to have sufficielA CO2
in the future.
various problems encountered in the
production in the Soviet urea plant
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The CO2 corn-/duction chief
of the combine.
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EnMal from mitotic s E c R E T
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Page
Attachment
pressor for the unit which is in constant operation worked well.
The greatest difficulty in this unit lay in the recirculation
section. The gas separation did not function well
One result, however, was that
because of the CO2 and the formation of the by-product "MEA"
corrosion appeared in the low pressure part of the recirculation
section.
6. In the building for end processing difficulties firat of all
appeared in the crystallizing equipment. Again four installa-
tions had been set up but at the most two worked. Each installa-
tion was calculated to produce 25 tons of crystalline urea per
day. The system looked a lot like the Dutch system and was
probably a copy of it.
7
a crystal propeller Lscrelvi
in the propeller gcrelvi there was a single blade. The Dutch
installation has double blades (see attachments 7 and 8 - Isey
para // below), this could be the cause
of difficulties on this point.
To manufacture prills the concentrated urea solution is even
more highly concentrated by vaporizing in a vacuum. The process
has to be quick in order to avoid forming "biureet." There were
four vaporizors in the plant for the end processing. They were
hooked up together in twos. They were Luwa (Swiss) model, type
6, and probably copied from them. The plant manager had a Luwa
instruction booklet. The vaporizors had been set up according
to the instructions in it and were calculated to produce 100
tons per day apiece. To obtain the best end product the con-
ditions were, according to the instructions: a pressure of
350 mm. of mercury, a temperature of 150 C, and the vaporizors
six meters above the pumps. The Soviets had adhered strictly
to these rules. these conditions in them-
selves make it impossible to form a good end product.1
the following circumstances also are the cause of
this installation's inability to produce any prill end product:
1. The flanges were only half attached to the vaporizors.
2. Underneath in the vaporizor water vs added and it ram out
again on the other side. The moisture content" of the product
mks too high as a result and made it impossible to prill.
3. Two vaporizors were hooked up to one vacuum installation
with vacuum pump and injector which is not feasible.
4. Underneath in the vaporizors no "false air" was injected
which experience has shown to be a good method.
5. The swan necks in the lines to the pumps did not belong
there and must operate to a disadvantage.
6. The connections at the pumps were faulty. These connections
did not belong there and must cause leaks. The pumps were
Rheinhatte model (the same as in the Dutch plant) and in
themselves worked well.
7. The urea reservoir above the prill tower did not belong
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8.
Attachment
there. It is incorrect to store the very highly con-
centrated urea solution in a reservoir above the prill
tower since by staying there"biureet" is formed in the
product. The urea must come to a low temperature as
:soon as possible and be brought directly from the pump
via the prill cup ink-the prill tower. See attachments
4, 7, and 9 (key in para // below).
Pgige
The ifrillztap was probably a copy.of the Dutch model the way
in which it was copied made it suitable for production of not
more than 80 tons a day. At the plant were two prill towers
each about 8 Meters in' diameter and about 35 meters tall..
two prill towers of these dimensions are
indeed necessary for a total production of 400 tons a
9. At the unit which was in operation the following
workers were employed: four men at the compressor, three at the
recirculation section, and eight at the crystallization installa-
tion. According to Dutch standards the numbers for the com-
pressor and the recirculation section were not too large but
for the crystallization installation there were four more men
than.necessary.
10.
there is possibility of improving the process in
the Soviet urea plant without much drastic alteration. Although
the Soviets have said they did nCt know where to look in studying
the Dutch urea plant', four Soviet design engineers have been
walking around continuously in the Dutch plant to copy the whole
plant and to ask the Dutch personnel all kinds of questions.
According to source, the Soviets certainly intend to alter their
plant themselves according to the Dutch process.
11. There follow below keys to the attachments:
Attachment 1: Diagram of Shchekino chemical
of Soviet urea plant. Index:
1. Soviet urea plant: synthesis
(see attachment 5).
2. Soviet urea plant: absorption and
(see attachment 6).
3. Soviet urea plant: end-processing
prill tower (see.attachment 7).
4. Compressor hall under construction
5. Office buildings.
6. Main entrance.
7. Cooling towers
8. NE15 synthesis ???
9. Second entrance.
10. Guard house and guard.
11. Entry gate.
12. Closed off gate.
13. Wooden fence.
14. Compressor hall under construction
combine'and'location
recirculation
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building
desorption columns
building and
two
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15. Air separation and
16. Graduated coolers.
17. Main-building of Dutch urea plant.
18. Dutch urea plant and prill tower.
19. Formaline plant.
20. Planned expansion for Dutch urea plant.
21. Caprolactam plant.
22. Formaldehyde plant.
23. 0ut6rmost fence of Shchekino chemical combine.
Dimensions: a. ? 35 meters
b. + 30 meters
? c. ? 30 meters
-d. ? 20 meters
Main building 1 = + 25 meters
? Main building 2 = ? 15 meters and prill towers
? 30 meters.
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Attachment
compressor hall.
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?/773407WhiM57/ Roads
Attachment 2: Diagram of mostimportant assembly and the difficulties in
the Soviet urea plant. -Index:
A. BuildingContaining the synthesis-recirculation (point 1
of attachment 1).
B. End-processing building. (point 3 of attachment 1).
1. ,Compressors (four units).
2. Recirculation apparatus (heater, separator, condenser)
(four units).
3. Crystalization propellers 5crewil (four units).
4. Vaporizors (four units).
5. Two prill towers.
Attachment 3:
Part of plant which does not work at all.
Part of plant Which works occasionally.
Part of plant which operates but where there
are a lot of difficulties.
bijaZfq
Cross section of,synthesis-recircUlationandithe absorption
and desorption columns (see atta64Ments 5 and 6). Index:
1. CO2 compressors.
2. Synthesis control panel.
3. Coolers and. separators.
4. Decomposition apparatus.
5. HY - NH3 pump.
6. "BD"- water pump.
7. Urea synthesis column.
8. Absorption and desorption columns.
9. Steps.
10. Centrifugal pumps.
Estimated dimensions:
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a - 12 meters .
b - 5 meters
c ?- 2 meters
d - 1 meter
e - 5 meters
f - 5 meters
g - 7 meters
h - 25 meters
j - 15 meters
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Attachment 4: Cross-Section of the end-processing building and the prill
towerq (see attachment 7). Index:
1. Vaporization apparatus (heater, vaporizor, separator).
2. Crystalization.
3. Vaporization apparatus.
4. Luwa, model 6.
5. Pumps, Rheinhatte model.
6. Elevator.
7. Prill tower.
Estimated dimensions: a - 18 meters
b - 7 meters
o - 10 meters
d - 5 meters
e - 15 meters
f - 5 meters
g - 8 meters
h - 30 meters
j- 5 meters
k - 1.5 meters
Attachment 5: Process diagram 1. Four units at 100 tons a day. Index:
1. CO2 compressor (Czech).
2. Reactor (Czech) (200 atmospheres; 192? a).
3. Three plunger NH4 pumps.
4. "BIrwater pump (250 atmospheres; 1.8 cubic meters/14TO_rubour5
5. First step of decomposition.
6. Second step of decomposition.
7. Carbamate condenser.
8. Urea stock tank.
Attachment 6: Process diagram 2. Index:
1. CO2 absorption column.
2. CO2 desorption column.
3. Mix compressor. ?
? Attachment 7: Probes g diagram 3. Index:
1. Heater.
2. Vaporizer.
3. Carbamate condensor.
4. Crystallizing propellers 5crew/ (capacity 25 tons a day).
? 5. Reservoir
6. Joining of second Luwa.
7. Luwa vaporizor, type 6.
8. Smelting pump (Rheinhatte model).
9. Stock tank.
10. Prill cup.
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11. Vaporization to about 92%; urea solution.
12. Vaporization to about 99.8%urea solution
13. Prill tower.
Attachment 8: Diagram of a crystal propeller .5-crej7. Index:
1. Vaporizor.
2. Reservoir.
3. Crystal propellers L;crews
4. Single crystal propeller
54 Double crystal propeller
6. Propeller 5creil blades.
Diagram of end processing in Soviet
VElporizors, Luwa model, type 6.
2. Vacuum installation with
3. Stirring device.
4. Flanges.
5. Water supply.
6. Swan neck.
7. Distance of six meters.
8. Connections.
9. Pumps, Rheinhutte model.
10. Reservoir for highly concentrated urea solution.
11. Prill cup, Dutch model.
12. Prill tower.
Attachment 9:
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screw in Soviet urea plant.
screw according to Dutch process.
urea plant. Index:
vacuum pump and injector.
Comments:
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1. In the Dutch process they use type 5 vaporizors figuring on a production
of 200 tonsa day under a pressure of 40-60 mm mercury and a temperature
of 138 C with the vaporizors ten meters above the pumps. In practi--
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this seems to be the most ideal conditions for a good end product. -HUM
2. At the Dutch urea plant there is only one prill tower of larger dimen-
sions moll suited to produce 500-600 tons per day.
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