Sulphur is a non-metallic chemical element identified by the letter S. For a list of sulphur's chemical properties, please click here. Sulphur is a valuable commodity and integral component of the world economy used to manufacture numerous products including fertilizers and other chemicals. For a list of sulphur uses click here. Sulphur also is a vital nutrient for crops, animals and people.
Sulphur occurs naturally in the environment and is the thirteenth most abundant element in the earth's crust. It can be mined in its elemental form, though this production has reduced significantly in recent years. Since early in the 20th Century, the Frasch process has been used as a method to extract sulphur from underground deposits, when it displaced traditional mining principally in Sicily. Most of the world's sulphur was obtained this way until the late 20th century, when sulphur's recovery from petroleum and gas sources (recovered sulphur) became more commonplace. As of 2011, the only operating Frasch mines worldwide are in Poland and since 2010 in Mexico.
Sulphur that is mined or recovered from oil and gas production is known as brimstone, or elemental sulphur. Sulphur produced as a by-product of ferrous and non-ferrous metal smelting is produced in the form of sulphuric acid. A smaller volume is produced as sulphur dioxide, which is also emitted from petroleum products used in vehicles and at some power plants. Plants absorb sulphur from the soil in sulphate form.
Well over half of global sulphuric acid production comes from burning elemental sulphur at points of consumption, with most of the remainder produced at non-ferrous metals smelters and pyrites mines. East Asia, led by China, is the largest overall acid producer, stemming largely from rapid growth. It is followed by North America, Africa, and Latin America. Practically all traded acid is from smelters. Western Europe is the largest acid trading region, followed by East Asia and North America.
Sulphur is the primary source to produce sulphuric acid, the world's most used chemical and a versatile mineral acid used as an essential intermediate in many processes in the chemical and manufacturing industries. Sulphuric acid is used by the fertilizer industry to manufacture primarily phosphates, and also nitrogen, potassium, and sulphate fertilizers. Sulphur is also used in many other industries including non-ferrous metals, pigments, fibres, hydrofluoric acid, carbon disulphide, pharmaceuticals, agricultural pesticides, personal care products, cosmetics, synthetic rubber vulcanization, water treatment, and steel pickling.