Gaseous Pollution Treatment

GASEOUS POLLUTION TREATMENT
The four main types of gas-phase air pollution treatment control are
1. Absorption (packed or plate columns)
2. Adsorption (with activated carbon or alumina silica gel)
3. Incineration (flaring, thermal, or catalytic oxidation)
4. Condensation (contact or surface condensers)
1. Absorption
Is a mass transfer operation in which a gas is dissolved in a liquid. A contaminant (pollutant
exhaust stream) contacts a liquid and the contaminant diffuses (is transported) from the gas
phase into the liquid phase. The absorption rate is enhanced by :
(1) high diffusion,
(2) high solubility of the contaminant,
(3) large liquid-gas contact area, and (
4) good mixing between liquid and gas phases (turbulence).
The liquid most often used for absorption is water because it is inexpensive, is readily
available, and can dissolve a number of contaminants. Reagents can be added to the
absorbing water to increase the removal efficiency of the system. Certain reagents merely
increase the solubility of the contaminant in the water. Other reagents chemically react with
the contaminant after it is absorbed. In reactive scrubbing the absorption rate is higher, so in
some cases a smaller, economical system can be used. However, the reactions can form
precipitates that could cause plugging problems in the absorber or in associated equipment.
Adsorption is a mass transfer process in which a gaseous contaminant adheres to the surface
of a solid.
2. Adsorption
It can be classified as physical or chemical.
(i) Physical adsorption
A gas molecule adheres to the surface of the solid due to an imbalance of natural forces
(electron distribution).
(ii) Chemisorption
Once the gas molecule adheres to the surface, it reacts chemically with it.
The major distinction is that physical adsorption is readily reversible whereas chemisorption
is not. All solids physically adsorb gases to some extent. Certain solids, called adsorbents,
have a high attraction for specific gases; they also have a large surface area that provides a
high capacity for gas capture. By far the most important adsorbent for air pollution control is
activated carbon. Because of its unique surface properties, activated carbon will preferentially
adsorb hydrocarbon vapors and odorous organic compounds from an airstream. Most other
adsorbents (molecular sieves, silica gel, and activated aluminas) will preferentially adsorb
water vapor, which may render them incapable of removing other contaminants. Adsorption
can be a very useful removal technique since it is capable of removing very small quantities
(a few parts per million) of vapor from an airstream. The vapors are not destroyed; instead
they are stored on the adsorbent surface until they can be condensed and recycled or burned
as an ultimate disposal technique.
3. Combustion (or incineration)
Is defined as a rapid, high-temperature gas-phase oxidation. Simply, the containment (a
carbon-hydrogen substance) is burned with air and converted to carbon dioxide and water
vapor. The operation of any combustionsource is governed by the three T's of combustion:
temperature, turbulence, and time. For complete combustion to occur, each contaminant
molecule must come in contact (turbulence) with oxygen at a sufficient temperature, while
being maintained at this temperature for an adequate time. These three variables are
dependent on each other. For example, if a higher temperature is used, less mixing of the
contaminant and combustion air or shorter residence time may be required. If adequate
turbulence cannot be provided, a higher temperature or longer residence time may be
employed for complete combustion. Combustion devices can be categorized as flares,
thermal incinerators, or catalytic incinerators.
4. Condensation
Is a process in which the volatile gases are removed from the contaminant stream and
changed into a liquid. Condensation is usually achieved by reducing the temperature of a
vapor mixture until the partial pressure of the condensable component equals its vapor
pressure. Condensation requires low temperatures to liquefy most pure contaminant vapors.
Condensation is affected by the composition of the contaminant gas stream. The presence of
additional gases that do not condense at the same conditions—such as air—hinders
condensation.
Condensers are classified as being either contact condensers or surface condensers.
(i)Contact condensers cool the vapor by spraying liquid directly on the vapor stream. These
devices resemble a simple spray scrubber.
(ii)Surface condensers are normally shell-and-tube heat exchangers. Coolant flows through
the tubes, while vapor is passed over and condenses on the outside of the tubes. In general,
contact condensers are more flexible, simpler, and less expensive than surface condensers.
However, surface condensers require much less water and produce nearly 20 times less
wastewater that must be treated than do contact condensers. Surface condensers also have an
advantage in that they can directly recover valuable contaminant vapors.

Gaseous Pollution Treatment

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GASEOUS POLLUTION TREATMENT

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