DEVELOPMENT OF AN ADVANCED PROCESS FOR SIMULTANEOUS REMOVAL OF SULFUR OXIDES AND NITROGEN OXIDES FROM FLUE GAS BY ELECTROMAGNETIC METHOD

A MAJOR CAUSE OF AIR POLLUTION AND ACID RAIN IS EMISSIONS OF SULFUR DIOXIDE (SO2) AND NITROGEN OXIDES (NOX) IN FLUE GASES. ADVANCED FLUE GAS CLEANUP TECHNOLOGIES CURRENTLY UNDER DEVELOPMENT PRODUCE CONCENTRATED STREAMS OF SO2 AND NOX. THIS CONCENTRATED STREAM SHOULD BE CONVERTED INTO VALUABLE BY-PRODUCTS TO REDUCE THE COST OF EMISSIONS CONTROL. CURRENT CONVERSION TECHNOLOGIES ARE EXPENSIVE AND REQUIRE MAJOR HARDWARD ADDITIONS AND REAGENT OR CATALYSTS. HIGH-FREQUENCY ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES (RF ENERGY) CAN BE USED TO ENHANCE THE RATE OF THOSE REACTIONS THAT ARE THERMODYNAMICALLY OR KINETICALLY LIMITED. PYROLYTIC CARBON IS AN EXCELLENT RF ENERGY ABSORBER AND ALSO A GOOD REDUCING AGENT. THEREFORE, CONVERSION OF SO2 AND NOX TO SULFUR, NITROGEN, AND CARBON DIOXIDE CAN READILY BE ACCOMPLISHED BY PYROLYTIC CARBON COMBINED WITH RF ENERGY. THE EXPERIMENTAL DATA OBTAINED TO DATE STRONGLY INDICATE THE POSSIBILITY OF DEVELOPING AN ADVANCED PROCESS FOR SIMULTANEOUS REMOVAL OF SO2 AND NOX FROM FLUE GAS. THE PROPOSED PROGRAM WILL DETERMINE THE TECHNICAL AND ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY OF THE ELECTROMAGNETIC METHOD FOR THE FLUE GAS CLEANUP. IT IS ALSOOUR OBJECTIVE TO DETERMINE THE R&D REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS TECHNOLOGY.