Linear Alkyl Benzene Sulfonic Acid (LABSA)

Linear alkyl benzene sulfonic acid

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, also known as LABSA, is a synthetic anionic surfactant (surface active agent) with wide application in the detergent industries.

LABSA

is one of the most important ingredients in laundry powders, laundry liquids, dishwashing products, all-purpose cleaners, etc. Due to its higher biodegradability and eco-friendliness, it has replaced highly branched alkylbenzene sulfonic acid in cleaning products. The linear alkyl chain of LABSA has typically 10 to 13 carbon atoms.

In the past, LABSA was prepared through a batch sulfonation process using different sulfonating agents such as sulfuric acid and oleum (fuming sulfuric acid). These days, the industrial production method of LABSA is based on the sulfonation of linear alkyl benzene (LAB) with sulfur trioxide (SO3) in a continuous falling film reactor. The sulfonation reaction of LAB is shown in Figure 1. Linear alkyl benzene is produced via the alkylation of benzene with linear olefins derived from dehydrogenated normal paraffins in the presence of a Lewis-type acid catalyst using the UOP technology (UOP is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Honeywell).

Figure 1: Sulfonation reaction of linear alkyl benzene (LAB)

In a falling-film reactor, the gaseous stream of SO3 is contacted with liquid LAB (produced via alkylation of benzene with normal olefins) while both reactants flow co-currently downward. SO3 is an aggressive electrophilic reagent that rapidly reacts with any organic compound containing an electron donor group. Thus, it must be diluted to moderate the rate of reaction. Commercially, air is utilized as the diluting agent.

The LAB sulfonation reaction is highly exothermic and product quality (especially its color) depends on the reactor's heat removal efficiency to prevent side reactions that produce undesirable by-products. Some of the main quality items of the final product include color, active matter content, sulphuric acid content, free oil content, and density. The sulfonation reaction results in a large increase in the viscosity of the reactants as well. The linear alkyl benzene sulfonic acid production process consists of four main steps including air drying, gaseous SO3 production, LAB sulfonation, and exhaust gas treatment as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2: Different steps of LABSA production process

In the first stage, the air is compressed and then dried by refrigeration and condensation of the contained water and subsequent adsorption on a desiccant bed. The sulfur is delivered to a burner for melting at an appropriate temperature to achieve the desired viscosity. After that, liquid sulfur is burned with the dried process air to produce a gas containing SO2. The SO2 is then converted to SO3 in a special conversion tower equipped with vanadium pentoxide catalytic beds and intercoolers. The SO3 gas leaving the converter is cooled to nearly ambient temperature. Then, the sulfur trioxide is filtered, diluted with air, and fed to the multi-tube falling film reactor to react with LAB and form LABSA. Heat recovered from the inter-stage coolers can be used to generate steam or reduce the need for an external heat source for the plant. Electrostatic precipitators and a sulfur dioxide scrubber must be utilized to remove acid mists and SO2/SO3 from the exhaust gases of the sulfonation plant.

The product leaving the reactor can then be fed directly to the digestion and hydration system where the reaction with absorbed SO3 is completed. Water is injected and mixed with the sulfonic acid, leaving the digester to remove anhydrides. The produced LABSA is stable and can be isolated, stored, and shipped without neutralization. However, it can be converted into a neutralized form using neutralizing agents which are typically strong or weak base compounds, such as alkali metal hydroxides (e.g., caustic soda), carbonates, and bicarbonates. Sodium-neutralized linear alkyl benzene sulfonate is by far the predominant grade and can be used as slurry or paste.

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Published July 2021

Linear alkylbenzene sulfonic acid (LABSA) is prepared commercially by sulfonating linear alkylbenzene (LAB). Linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS), the world’s largest-volume synthetic surfactant, which includes the various salts of sulfonated alkylbenzenes, is widely used in household detergents as well as in numerous industrial applications. The LABSA market is driven by the markets for LAS, primarily household detergents. Linear alkylbenzene sulfonate was developed as a biodegradable replacement for nonlinear (branched) alkylbenzene sulfonate (BAS) and has largely replaced BAS in household detergents throughout the world.

The pattern of LAS consumption demonstrates the overwhelming preference by consumers for liquid laundry detergents in North America, whereas powders continue to be the dominant products in Western Europe, mainland China, and Northeast Asia (Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan). Comparable and reliable data in other world regions are generally unavailable, but in these less-developed world areas, LAS is essentially used only in laundry powders (particularly in India and Indonesia) and hand dishwashing liquids. The latter are often used as general-purpose cleaners.

The following pie chart shows world consumption of LABSA:

Household cleaning products had a banner year in 2020 as consumers stocked up on cleaners, sanitizers, and disinfectants to help combat COVID-19. Demand will remain robust in 2021 with consumer’s heightened cleaning standards, but it is believed that there will be some pull-back in the frequency of household cleaning during the rest of the forecast period (especially if things on the pandemic front continue to improve—a situation that still remains highly dynamic at the time of writing this report).

Industrial, institutional, and commercial cleaners account for most of the other applications, but LAS is also used as an emulsifier (e.g., for agricultural herbicides and in emulsion polymerization) and as a wetting agent. Very small volumes are also used in personal care applications. Nonhousehold uses lost some market share in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which provided a mixed bag of results for industrial and institutional cleaners. Those sectors that remained open or were deemed essential saw a surge in demand for cleaning products, while the lockdowns, travel restrictions, and the closure of public buildings and nonessential businesses led to significant decline in demand in those industries. With increased vaccinations, falling positive coronavirus cases, and the increased lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, LAS consumption should experience above-average growth in nonhousehold applications through 2025. However, this situation remains highly dynamic at the time of writing this report.

Although consumption of LAS will likely remain stable in the highly developed regions, it will increase by 3.0– 6.0% per year in some less-developed regions or countries, such as the Middle East, Africa, and India, where powder detergents are still a very large part of the laundry detergent market. As a result of the rapid growth of LAS demand in the Asia Pacific region, demand in the region accounted for approximately half of global demand in 2020.

LABSA/LAS production is also impacted by the supply situation for competing products—mainly alcohol ether sulfates (AES). Shortages in AES supply or its high price has usually favored the use of LABSA/LAS. In the developing world, LAS competes with soaps.

For more detailed information, see the table of contents, shown below.

S&P Global’s Chemical Economics Handbook – Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonic Acid (LABSA)/Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonate (LAS) is the comprehensive and trusted guide for anyone seeking information on this industry. This latest report details global and regional information, including

Key benefits

S&P Global’s Chemical Economics Handbook – Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonic Acid (LABSA)/Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonate (LAS) has been compiled using primary interviews with key suppliers and organizations, and leading representatives from the industry in combination with S&P Global’s unparalleled access to upstream and downstream market intelligence and expert insights into industry dynamics, trade, and economics.

This report can help you

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• Identify trends and driving forces influencing chemical markets
• Forecast and plan for future demand
• Understand the impact of competing materials
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