H₂SO₄

Sulfuric Acid

Also known as:

Oil of Vitriol
Hydrogen Sulfate

The Science

Why CPVC Works Well With Sulfuric Acid

High-quality CPVC like Corzan® CPVC has a high level of chlorine in the polymer chain. This protects the CPVC from the degrading effects of highly corrosive acids, like sulfuric acid, commonly used by industrial plants for everything from pH adjustment to the manufacture of other important industrial chemicals. Within safe operating temperatures, Corzan CPVC has excellent resistance to sulfuric acid due to its superior engineering and formulation.

CPVC resists material degradation and corrosion when conveying sulfuric acid far better than metals, but these still can occur over time. The severity of general degradation will be contingent on temperature, pressure, acid concentrations.

Chemical Background

What is Sulfuric Acid?

Sulfuric acid is very common in many industries. This strong chemical is one of the most dangerous chemicals in the world, capable of damaging expensive machinery and causing serious harm to human eyes, noses, throats and skin. Long-term exposure can cause chronic respiratory damage. Sulfuric acid is a colorless to dark brown, oily liquid with no odor but with a distinctive acidic taste. Because of its corrosiveness, high concentrations can cause expensive damage to industrial machinery, and even weak concentrations can cause eye, nose, throat and skin burns in people, along with chronic respiratory damage in case of long-term exposure.

When processed and handled properly, sulfuric acid is one of the most useful industrial chemicals in the world. Most sulfuric acid is produced at between 93% and 98% concentration but can be diluted based on the application.

The History of Sulfuric Acid

Medieval Sumer and Europe

Medieval chemists and alchemists include the study of “vitriol,” which can produce sulfuric acid.

1600

Johann Glauber prepares sulfuric acid in a lab setting.

1736

Joshua Ward begins the first large-scale sulfuric acid production.

1831

Peregrine Phillips patents the contact process of sulfuric acid production, which is still the primary production method used today.

Present

Sulfuric acid is one of the most-consumed chemicals worldwide.

Did you know?

The United States produces more sulfuric acid than any other chemical. It is produced using a contact process where a gas mixture containing sulfur dioxide (SO2) is passed together with oxygen over a catalyst to oxidize the sulfur dioxide to sulfur trioxide. This is then absorbed in sulfuric acid where it reacts with added water to form more sulfuric acid.

Temperature & Concentration

Corzan CPVC's Resistance to Sulfuric Acid

CPVC quality is essential to the safe handling of sulfuric acid, especially as the heat and acid concentration rise. Most sulfuric acid is produced at between 93 and 98% concentration but can be diluted based on the application's need. Corzan CPVC’s superior compound and quality assurance make it the premier CPVC material, delivering excellent resistance to sulfuric acid in applications ranging from adhesives to fuel additives and pigments to plasticizers and process regulators*.

corzan cpvc chemical resistance to sulfuric acid chart

* Corzan® Material and Piping Solutions only partners with manufacturers with a proven track record of quality and reliability. These manufacturers are carefully chosen to convert Corzan CPVC into the high-performance piping systems, ducting, sheets and lining and more that customers rely on. Always confirm any planned application is in compliance with our partner’s design guidelines.

A pipe made from low-quality CPVC resin and compounding ingredients is far more susceptible to the degrading effects of sulfuric acid, sometimes lasting only a few months.

Drawbacks of Other Materials

The Drawbacks of Other Materials Handling Sulfuric Acid

Sulfuric acid is among the most common chemicals that Corzan CPVC reliably handles in industrial applications. All materials will react to sulfuric acid according to concentration levels, temperatures, and pressures. But engineers choose Corzan CPVC for sulfuric acid due to its performance capabilities compared to metals and other plastics.

Carbon Steel: A protective layer of FeSO4 is immediately formed when carbon steel comes into contact with sulfuric acid, the preservation of that protective layer depends on the concentration, temperature and flow rate of the acid through the pipe. The corrosion rate of the FeSO4 protective layer will increase in pipes and storage tanks with higher temperatures than those will lower operating temperatures. The same can be said about pipelines with high flowrates as the agitation of the FeS04 layer is related to velocity. Although carbon steel can be used, it has been found to degrade quicker than plastics and thermoplastics.

Stainless Steel: Some stainless steels (like 316) are resistant to sulfuric acid at ambient temperatures but can become less resistant as temperatures increase.

PVC (Polyvinyl chloride): PVC may be suitable at low concentrations and temperature but will have a shorter service life than CPVC.

PTFE (Teflon) and PFA( perfluoroalkyl) : PTFE or other fluoropolymers like PFA are the only materials that can withstand all concentrations of sulfuric acid. But the material is prohibitively expensive and may also be under extra regulatory scrutiny due to their persistent nature.

Common Uses

Common Uses of Sulfuric Acid

Cleaning and etching of semiconductors and PCBs
pH level regulation in manufacturing processes for water treatment as well as food and pharmaceutical production
Fertilizers
Paper production
Leaching reagent in mineral processing operations
Electroplating
Rust and scale removal from steel
Petrochemical refining
Lead-Acid batteries
Household cleaner formulation

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Explore More Chemicals

For long-term system reliability, it is critical to choose a material that resists corrosion. Corzan CPVC effectively stands up to most acids, bases and salts and is innately resistant to corrosive chemicals, including the 10 commonly used chemicals that can degrade and reduce the service life of many metals.

NaClO Sodium Hypochlorite

H₂SO₄ Sulfuric Acid

HCl Hydrochloric Acid

NaOH Sodium Hydroxide

NaCl Sodium Chloride

H₃PO₄ Phosphoric Acid

ClO₂ Chlorine Dioxide

HNO₃ Nitric Acid

H₂O₂ Hydrogen Peroxide

H₂O Water