On the potential of absorption and reactive adsorption for desulfurization of ultra low-sulfur commercial diesel in the liquid phase in the presence of fuel additive and bio-diesel

Sorption of sulfur components in the liquid phase was used to desulfurize ultra low sulfur diesel (ULSD) to below 1 ppmw S. Several concepts of sorption were considered by using both physisorption and chemisorption materials and conditions. Adsorption assisted by reaction with Ni sorbent was found to be most successful. Using a pre-commercial diesel representing a mature diesel on all aspects except for the absence of fuel stabilizers and bio-diesel, a sulfur breakthrough capacity of 2 mg S/g could be achieved using a Ni-sorbent at an acceptable LHSV of 0.7 h^− 1 on average. However, successive experiments indicated that the desulfurization capacity depended strongly on the presence of fuel-additive and bio-diesel in commercial ULSD. The presence of the cetane improver 2-ethylhexylnitrate (2­EHN) was shown to decrease the sulfur capacity by roughly 50%. The presence of bio-diesel (fatty acid methyl ester, abbreviated to FAME) was shown to completely disable the desulfurization process. This was confirmed by comparing BP Ultimate diesel with FAME (obtained in 2008) and without FAME (obtained in 2006). From this evaluation it turned out that the targeted breakthrough capacity of 1 mg S/g sorbent was within reach for commercial ULSD until late 2006 when adding bio-diesel to ULSD became common practice in Europe. Several attempts to remove the additives prior to desulfurization by using copper loaded zeolites, active carbon and silica gel proved unsuccessful to bring the sulfur adsorption capacity for current diesel to the level observed for 2­EHN and FAME-free diesel. It is concluded that sorption in the liquid phase does not yet represent a viable desulfurization technology for ultra-low sulfur diesel.     

Sorption heat pipe—a new thermal control device for space and ground application

Sorption heat pipe (SHP) combines the enhanced heat and mass transfer in conventional heat pipes with sorption phenomena in the sorbent bed. SHP consists of a sorbent system (adsorber/desorber and evaporator) at one end and a condenser + evaporator at the other end. It can be used as a cooler/heater and be cooled and heated as a heat pipe. SHP is suggested for space and ground application, because it is insensitive to some “g” acceleration. This device can be composed of a loop heat pipe (LHP), or capillary pumped loop (CPL) and a solid sorption cooler. The most essential feature is that LHP and SHP have the same evaporator, but are working alternatively out of phase. SHP can be applied as a cryogenic cooler, or as a fluid storage canister. When it is used for cryogenic thermal control of a spacecraft on the orbit (cold plate for infrared observation of the earth, or space), or efficient electronic components cooling device (lased diode), it is considered as a cooler. When it is applied as a cryogenic storage system, it insures the low pressure of cryogenic fluid inside the sorbent material at room temperature.     

Laboratory tests on the impact of superabsorbent polymers on transformation and sorption of xenobiotics in soil taking 14C-imazalil as an example

Due to water scarcity, the agricultural production in arid areas is dependent on a sustainable irrigation management. In order to optimize irrigation systems, the application of superabsorbent polymers (SAP) as soil amendments, frequently studied within the last years, may be an appropriate measure to enhance the water holding capacity and the plant-available water in poor arable soils. These persistent polymers are also able to reduce heavy metal and salt stress to crops by accumulating those inorganic compounds. However, the impact of SAP on fate and behavior of organic xenobiotics in soil is unknown. Therefore, transformation and sorption of the model substance ¹⁴C-imazalil were monitored without and with SAP amendment in silty sand and sand soil under laboratory conditions.Within the 100-d incubation period, the transformation of ¹⁴C-imazalil was not substantially affected by the SAP amendment even though the microbial activity increased considerably. In the silty sand soil, extractable residues dropped from 90% to 45% without and from 96% to 46% with SAP amendment. Non-extractable residues continuously increased up to 49% and 35% while mineralization reached 6% and 5%, respectively. In the sand soil, characterized by its lower microbial activity and lower organic carbon content, extractable residues merely dropped from 99% to 81% and from 100% to 85% while non-extractable residues increased from 2% to 14% and 1% to 10%, respectively. Mineralization was lower than 2%. The increased microbial activity, usually promoting transformation processes of xenobiotics, was compensated by the enhanced sorption in the amended soils revealed by the increase of soil/water distribution coefficients (K_d) of 26 to 42 L kg^− 1 for the silty sand and 6 to 25 L kg^− 1 for the sand, respectively.     

Sorption and biodegradation of sulfonamide antibiotics by activated sludge: experimental assessment using batch data obtained under aerobic conditions

This study investigated the adsorption, desorption, and biodegradation characteristics of sulfonamide antibiotics in the presence of activated sludge with and without being subjected to NaN₃ biocide. Batch experiments were conducted and the relative contributions of adsorption and biodegradation to the observed removal of sulfonamide antibiotics were determined. Three sulfonamide antibiotics including sulfamethoxazole (SMX), sulfadimethoxine (SDM), and sulfamonomethoxine (SMM), which had been detected in the influent and the activated sludge of wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) in Taiwan, were selected for this study. Experimental results showed that the antibiotic compounds were removed via sorption and biodegradation by the activated sludge, though biodegradation was inhibited in the first 12 h possibly due to competitive inhibition of xenobiotic oxidation by readily biodegradable substances. The affinity of sulfonamides to sterilized sludge was in the order of SDM > SMM > SMX. The sulfonamides existed predominantly as anions at the study pH of 6.8, which resulted in a low level of adsorption to the activated sludge. The adsorption/desorption isotherms were of a linear form, as well described by the Freundlich isotherm with the n value approximating unity. The linear distribution coefficients (K_d) were determined from batch equilibrium experiments with values of 28.6 ± 1.9, 55.7 ± 2.2, and 110.0 ± 4.6 mL/g for SMX, SMM, and SDM, respectively. SMX, SMM, and SDM desorb reversibly from the activated sludge leaving behind on the solids 0.9%, 1.6%, and 5.2% of the original sorption dose of 100 μg/L. The sorbed antibiotics can be introduced into the environment if no further treatments were employed to remove them from the biomass.     

Phenanthrene sorption to Chinese coal: importance of coal's geochemical properties

Phenanthrene (Phen) was chosen as the probe compound for determining the sorption of PAHs to a series of different coal samples from China. Based on elemental analysis and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra analysis, coal samples were characterized with different metamorphic evolutional degrees. The experimental sorption data were fitted well by the Freundlich model, suggesting enhanced sorption capacity and strong nonlinearity of coal samples. The combined partition and adsorption model yielded a better fit than the Freundlich isotherm, indicating that adsorption dominated the sorption at low aqueous concentrations. Correlations between coal properties and sorption capacity values indicated that C%, H/C and O/C atomic ratios were the key factors controlling the sorption behavior. Compared to total carbon, BC might play more important role in the sorption of Phen to coal samples. Moreover, there existed nonlinear relationships between combined carbon, aromatic and aliphatic carbon contents and log K_Fr and n values, respectively, indicating the significance of aromatic and aliphatic carbon in the coal sorption behavior.     

Sorption study of toluene and xylene in aqueous solutions by recycled tires crumb rubber

Sorption of toluene and xylene by tire crumb rubber (TCR) and its main components: carbon black (CB) and styrene-butadiene polymer (SBP) were evaluated. The 12 starting concentrations of adsorbates in aqueous solutions ranged from 0.05 mg/L to 100.0mg/L. The amounts of CB and SBP used in the sorption tests were determined considering their typical contents in tire crumb rubber (30% and 60% w/w, respectively). Freundlich's isotherms and Scatchard plot parameters suggested a two-step sorption process when TCR was used as the sorbent; whereas a single-step route was apparent when the sorption experiments were carried out with CB or SBP. Freundlich's n parameter was estimated at 0.65 for CB and 1.0 for both TCR and SBP. A removal of 60% of toluene and 81% of xylene from starting 50 ppm solutions was attained in the first 30 minutes of contact using 5 g/L of TCR.     

The effect of temperature on toluene sorption by granular activated carbon and its use in permeable reactive barriers in cold regions

Granular activated carbon (GAC) has been used as an adsorbent for hydrocarbons in a range of permeable reactive barriers. This work investigates the influence of temperature on adsorption performance. In particular, the influence of temperature in the range of 20 °C to 4 °C on the sorption equilibrium and kinetics of toluene on GAC surface were investigated. The results show that low temperature leads to decreased toluene sorption by GAC and slower reaction kinetics. Sorption kinetics studies show that diffusion coefficients are also lower at 4 °C (3.65 × 10⁻¹³ m² s⁻¹) than 20 °C (5.112 × 10⁻¹³ m² s⁻¹).