A recycling facility for converting carbon dioxide and ammonia to urea has been designed and constructed in Iran's southwestern Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari province.
Urea, most commonly used as fertilizer, is produced from synthetic ammonia and carbon dioxide. With the colossal amount of carbon dioxide and ammonia produced by refineries, a technology capable of utilizing these two as raw materials would be beneficial.
Behrouz Salimnabi, CEO of Shar-e Kord Carbon Dioxide Company, said, "On a daily basis, our site refines 100 tons of ammonia emitted by petrochemical industries and uses it for the production of urea."
He added that in line with the policies of Resistance Economy and with the industrial convergence in mind, a prototype of the carbon dioxide refinery facility in Kermanshah's petrochemical plant was installed, which led to a 5% jump in production.
Resistance Economy is a set of principles outlined by the Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei to help bolster domestic production, curb dependence on oil exports, improve productivity and encourage Iranians to buy domestically-made products.
Salimnabi said, "The technology, which was monopolized by the US, Canada and Japan, is now available for our petrochemical industry."
The company chief also claimed that his industrial plant is more energy-efficient and feasible than the sites constructed by foreign counterparts.
Stressing the environmental benefits of the project, he said, "By utilizing this technology, the national emission of air pollutants will observe a 40,000-ton decrease."
In November 2015, Massoumeh Ebtekar, head of the Department of Environment, was quoted by the local media as saying that Iran’s climate action plan—approved by the government last week—aims to curb the country’s greenhouse gas emissions by overhauling policies and investing in new technology. The fact that Iran has become increasingly vulnerable to the effects of climate change in the past several decades discounts recent reports that it is well positioned to adapt to and overcome climate challenges.
Reducing reliance on fossil fuels and moving toward a low-carbon, green economy is of utmost importance to Iran and its future.
Iran pledged to unconditionally cut its greenhouse gases emissions by 4% by 2030. By utilizing this facility nationwide, Iran can decrease its pollutant emission by 40,000 tons, which accounts for 8% of the pledged amount.
