Complete oxidation of methane at low temperature over Pt and Pd catalysts for the abatement of lean-burn natural gas fuelled vehicles emissions: influence of water and sulphur containing compounds

The catalytic activity of fresh Pd and Pt catalysts supported on γ-alumina in the complete oxidation of CH₄ traces under lean-burn conditions was studied in the presence or the absence of water or H₂S. Steam-aged catalysts were also studied in order to simulate long-term ageing in real lean-burn natural gas fuelled vehicles (NGVs) exhaust conditions. Without water or H₂S added to the feed, Pd catalysts exhibit a superior catalytic activity in methane oxidation compared to Pt ones, whatever the catalysts were fresh or aged. The addition of 10 vol.% water vapour to the feed strongly affects the activity of the fresh Pd catalyst, thus being only slightly more efficient than the fresh Pt one. H₂S has a strong poisoning effect on the catalytic activity of Pd catalysts, while Pt catalysts are more resistant. The fresh H₂S-poisoned Pd/Al₂O₃ catalyst was studied by TPD in O₂/He. Poisoning species decompose above 873 K as SO₂ and O₂ in relative concentrations consistent with the decomposition of surface sulphate species. However, a treatment in O₂/He at temperatures as high as 923 K does not allow the complete regeneration of the catalytic activity of H₂S-poisoned Pd/Al₂O₃. A mechanism involving the poisoning of PdO by sulphate species is proposed. Different diffusion processes by which these sulphate species can migrate back and forth between PdO and the support, depending on the experimental conditions, are suggested.     

Municipal solid waste conversion to energy

In recent years it has been recognised by an increasing number of nations that there is considerable energy potential within MSW. As a result many countries have established R,D& D programmes to examine methods of exploiting this potential. The IEA's MSW Conversion Activity was set up in 1986 to provide an infrastructure for sharing information and co-ordinating work in this area internationally. This Activity was extended in 1989 and currently a total of 9 nations participate in it.

To cope with the wide scope of the area (encompassing both biological and thermal processing of MSW) the Activity was divided into three subgroups or Expert Working Groups (EWGs). Each of these dealt with a distinct area of expertise:

1. •Downstream effects of source separation and screening of MSW

2. •Sampling and analytical protocols

3. •Landfill gas

In addition to these groups a central secretariat based at Harwell (UK) has provided guidance, established and administered databases of contacts and produced a series of national reports.

This paper describes the achievements of the Activity and discusses work proposed for the future.     

Change of characteristics of desulfurization and denitrification by combustion flue gas composition and electrode configuration under pulsed corona discharge

Laboratory-scale and parametric experiments of SO₂ and NO_x removal from the simulated combustion gas by pulsed corona discharge have been performed by changing the combustion gas composition and temperature, the electrode configuration of plasma reactor, and the polarity of high-voltage electrode. The following results are obtained: 1) the higher the concentration of H₂O and O₂, the higher the efficiency of desulfurization and denitrification at the same specific input; 2) the pulsed corona discharge with a voltage pulsewidth as short as 200 ns of negative polarity shows the possibility to attain almost 90 percent deSO_x and deNO_x efficiency at the specific discharge input of 20 J/g, which is almost the same as the specific input in the electron-beam process; 3) the deNO_x characteristics show a little temperature dependence in the range of 70 to 130°C, but the deSO_x efficiency increases rapidly in the temperature region below 100°C suggesting the thermochemical dependence of deSO_x reaction; 4) when desulfurization and denitrification proceed, the white dendritic powder deposits on the plasma reactor whose composition is identified to be 49 mol% (NH₄)₂SO₄ and 47 mol% of 2NH₄NO₃ · (NH₄)₂SO₄, and the ratio of SO₂, NO and NH₃ of the deposit is almost equal to that of supplied gas.     

Ignition and Combustion of Dust-Gas Suspensions

The ignition and combustion of dust-gas suspensions are considered. It is shown that the ability of these systems to accumulate heat is determined not only by their kinetic and thermal properties but also by the relation between their reaction surface and the heat-removal surface (f). Experimental information on flame temperatures, ignition delays, and flame propagation over gas suspensions is processed using the parameter f, and the postulate on the stimulating role of the developed reaction surface in activating these processes is validated. It is shown that during overall burning, diffusion combustion of particles occurs only for rather small values of f. The ambiguous effect of the parameter f on the ignition and combustion processes leads to the necessity of optimizing the fuel size distribution and concentration for the effective operation of the power devices. The role of the macroparameters of two-phase flames of refractory metals in the synthesis of combustion nanoproducts is analyzed. __________ Translated from Fizika Goreniya i Vzryva, Vol. 41, No. 6, pp. 3–14, November–December, 2005.     

In situ densification of SHS composites from nanoreactants

The primary objective of this investigation was focused on in-situ densification of SHS composites synthesized from nanoreactants. Simultaneous combustion synthesis and densification technique was utilized and it was found to be an effective method to form dense intermetallic-ceramic composites. In this research study, two nanoreactant energetic systems, Al-TiO₂ and Ni-Al-Al₂O₃, were explored. In-situ combustion synthesis and densification experiments were conducted in a uniaxial press with densification pressures up to 200 MPa and preheating capability of 1500K. The experiments were conducted in both vacuum and Ar atmosphere. Samples of titanium aluminides-alumina composites with density in the range of 95–98% have been obtained at a preheating temperature of 860°C and pressure of 100 MPa. Reactants and SHS-produced materials were characterized by SEM, XRD, BET, and DSC/TGA. In addition, more fundamental studies of the reaction kinetics as a function of average particle size of aluminum nanopowders were conducted using DSC.      

Progress and recent trend in MILD combustion

Moderate or intense low oxygen dilution(MILD)combustion plays a significant role in the mitigation of combustion-generated pollutants and greenhouse gases whilst meeting thermal efficiency needs.However,due to the lack of the fundamental knowledge on this combustion,there is a misconception that MILD combustion should be established by high preheating of the air,which has limited its application.Our research and development on this combustion has been performed for several years. We have found that the requ...     

Mechanical activation-assisted electro-thermal explosion synthesis of the Ti2AlC phase

This study deals with the synthesis of the Ti₂AlC phase using the Electro-Thermal Explosion under Pressure with Confinement (ETEPC) technique. The effects of the ETEPC technique and the milling process parameters on the TiC_x phase content and the formation mechanism of the Ti₂AlC phase were investigated. The latter is mainly affected by the morphology of the powder mixture and aluminum melted amount. The optimization of the above parameters allowed the achievement of the desired reaction, leading to the formation of the Ti₂AlC phase with a purity of about 97?wt%. The results clearly demonstrate that the ETEPC process enables one to control both time and material synthesis temperature.     

湍流流动及燃烧模拟研究进展

湍流流动往往伴随着燃烧过程。湍流燃烧现象广泛存在于自然界及诸多实际工程问题中，成为近几年的研究热点。现有的相关理论及模型纷繁复杂。本文对该领域研究进行了分类总结、综合评述。可对全面了解研究现状和进一步的发展前景提供方向性的指导和帮助。     

高浓度煤粉燃烧时炉内结渣的机理分析

在分析煤粉炉结渣过程及其机理的基础上，对高浓度煤粉燃烧时易导致结渣的主要特性进行了探讨，表明还原性气氛的出现和煤粉浓缩时富铁颗粒的富集有导致和促进结渣的作用；提出了一些防止和减轻结渣的必要措施     

湖南省动力用煤煤质特性评估体系

将动力用煤的燃烧特性、结渣特性以及运行的特征参数有机地结合在一起，进行综合评估．单一的特性指数在反映煤质特性方面具有一定的分辨率，但却难以全面准确地反映动力燃煤的传性．在工程应用中，煤质的固有特性又和具体设备及运行条件结合在一起，使得单一的判别指数更显得无能为力．为提高其分辨能力，特提出动力用煤煤质特性的评估体系。