Influence of pretreatment and activation conditions in the preparation of activated carbons from anthracite

The influence of pretreatment and activation conditions on anthracite activation was investigated. Separation of low ash coals by using dense media was conducted to obtain appropriate raw materials for activation. Activated carbons were produced from crushed and granule coals by physical activation (steam or CO₂) and physical activation with chemical pretreatment in mild and strong conditions. Microporous activated carbons having a surface area of 900 m₂/g were produced by steam activation from granules with 60% burn-off for 3 hrs of activation. Chemical pretreatment at the strong condition increased the surface area by 30% as compared with non-treated activated carbons. Chemical pretreatment, in general, affected activation degree, so pore volume increased by 20% and burn-off increased remarkably at the identical activation conditions. CO₂ activation was proven to be an effective method for producing microporous activated carbons having an average pore diameter of 20 å.     

Hybrid Solar Dryer for Quality Dried Tomato

A prototype of a hybrid solar dryer was developed for drying of tomato. It consists of a flat-plate concentrating collector, heat storage with auxiliary heating unit, and drying unit. It has a loading capacity of 20 kg of fresh half-cut tomato. The dryer was tested in different weather and operating conditions. The performance of the dryer was compared with an open sun-drying method. Drying performance was evaluated in terms of drying rate, color, ascorbic acid, lycopene, and total flavonoids. Tomato halves were pretreated with UV radiation, acetic acid, citric acid, ascorbic acid, sodium metabisulphite, and sodium chloride. Sodium metabisulphite (8 g L^?1) was found to be effective to prevent the microbial growth at lower temperature (45°C).     

Use of Difunctional Compounds During Rapid Steam Hydrolysis (Rash) Pretreatment

Mixed hardwood chips were treated with difunctional compounds as catalysts to study the reaction of wood with steam. The Rapid Steam Hydrolysis (RASH) pretreatment process was used for steam treatment. The difunctional compounds studied were maleic anhydride, phthalic anhydride, isophthalic acid, and terephthalic acid at 1.5% concentration based on dry wood weight. RASH pretreatment was performed for one minute at 180°C, 200°, 220°C, 230°C, 240°C, and 260°C. These compounds strongly modified the RASH pretreated material, especially the physical structure. Overall recovery of the pretreated catalyzed and uncatalyzed solids decreased with an increase in RASH temperatures. Catalyst addition did not make a difference on the recovery of pretreated solids. Cellulose degradation increased with temperature for catalyzed systems. Hemicellulose solubilization and degradation were extremely sensitive to the type of catalyst and RASH temperatures. Almost all of the hemicellulose was lost at higher temperatures. Lignin losses did not appear to be affected by the addition of catalyst except at 260°C. Enzymatic rates were improved by addition of the catalysts, especially at the lower temperatures. The maleic anhydride gave the highest enzymatic rates at all temperatures, and phthalic anhydride gave the second highest. The water solubles generally followed the same trends as the enzymatic hydrolysis rates and increased with the addition of catalysts, especially maleic anhydride.     

Effect of microwave irradiation on the disintegration and acidogenesis of municipal secondary sludge

This work experimentally determined the effect of microwave treatment on the disintegration and acidogenesis of municipal secondary sludge. Sludge samples (500 g) were heated for 0, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 15 min in a microwave oven (2450 MHz, 700 W). The solubilization degree (soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD)/COD) of sludge increased asymptotically with microwave irradiation time from 2% at 0 min to 22% at 15 min. The concentrations of soluble protein, carbohydrate, lipid, and calcium also increased with microwave irradiation time. The biochemical acidogenic potentials (BAP) of sludge increased from 3.58 to 4.77 g COD l⁻¹. The results show that microwave irradiation increases the solubilization degree and BAP of municipal secondary sludge.     

分光光度法测定水中挥发酚的一些问题及处理方法研究

用光度法测定水体中的挥发酚,实验探讨了校准曲线的绘制、萃取过程中漏液现象的处理、比色时间的控制问题,提出了改进措施。实施改进方法以后,提高了样品分析的准确性。     

混凝剂复配处理山梨酸废水的实验研究

选用氢氧化钙复配聚丙烯酰胺对山梨酸废水进行了预处理,考察了混凝剂用量、温度、搅拌时间等因素对CODcr去除率的影响。结果表明：在氢氧化钙用量为16g／L、聚丙烯酰胺用量为5mg／L、混凝温度50℃、搅拌时间3min时,CODcr去除率可达43．1％。氢氧化钙复配聚丙烯酰胺的混凝效果明显优于氢氧化钙和聚丙烯酰胺单独使用时的效果,并且可显著缩短絮体沉降时间。     

Thermally Pretreated 46% Pt/Vulcan XC72: Characterisation by TGA/DSC/TEM and Cyclic Voltammetry

We report a study of thermal stability and impact of thermal pretreatment procedures for 46% Pt/Vulcan XC72 (Tanaka) fuel cell catalyst. Stability in air and in inert gas (nitrogen, argon, helium) has been investigated by thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), TGA‐mass spectrometry (TGA‐MS) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Two distinct low temperature mass loss processes (100–200 and 285–300 °C) were observed, each exhibiting unique pretreatment temperature dependencies. TGA‐MS data in helium show fragment ions that suggest the thermal degradation processes are associated with decomposition of materials such as processing aids. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) reveals a modest increase in average Pt nanoparticle size upon thermal pretreatment. After a pretreatment protocol based on TEM and thermal characterisation (300 °C/15 min, N₂), the electrochemically active surface area did not increase. At the kinetically controlled potential region (E >0.8 V) there was a small drop in current density for treated 46% Pt/C in comparison with as‐received catalyst. The slowing in ORR kinetics is significant. Apparently, the removal of organic components, which would improve mass transport, is negated by increased nanoparticle size.     

Role of membrane pore size in tertiary flocculation/adsorption/ultrafiltration treatment of municipal wastewater

Flocculation, adsorption onto powered activated carbon (PAC), and ultrafiltration (UF), alone and in combination, were tested for tertiary treatment of the secondary effluent from municipal wastewater treatment at the Ashkelon plant (in southern Israel). Encouraging and reliable results of total organic carbon (TOC) of <3 mg/l were achieved with a combination of 130 mg/l FeCl₃, 0.6 g/l PAC and UF. The relative contribution of the UF membrane to the reduction of TOC changed with the molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) of the membrane, from a negligible 2.9% for a 100-kDa-MWCO membrane to 17% for 10- and 2-kDa membranes. The latter membranes, however, developed significant fouling, with a 35% drop in flux during first 30 min of the filtration cycle. The flux drop for the 50- and 100-kDa membranes was in the low range of 3%. The optimal MWCO interval of 20- to 50-kDa in combination with flocculation/PAC pretreatment gave a significant reduction in organic content with minimal membrane fouling. Detailed GC–MS analysis showed that the combined treatment gave very efficient retention of organic compounds with molecular weights below 800 Da, with the consequent absence of harmful compounds in the tertiary effluent. It was therefore concluded that the recommended flocculation/adsorption protocol constitutes an effective pretreatment for UF and that the obtained tertiary effluent can be used for unrestricted irrigation.     

Feed water pretreatment for desalination plants

Effective membrane pretreatment is a crucial requirement for trouble free and cost effective RO desalination. Pretreatment construction costs are significant and may reach as much as 10%-20% of the total desalination plant capital costs. This paper presents a general review of the central factors involved in assessing raw water quality. The main foulant categories are described and the various unit operations commonly applied are reviewed. Pretreatment aspects of desalination offer fertile grounds for advancing desalination technologies. Promising research directions are highlighted.