Activated carbon for control of nitrogen oxide emissions

Abstract

Activated carbons were used to selectively remove NOx from simulated flue gas at temperatures between 25 and 125 °C. Processing conditions and physical/chemical characteristics of the carbons which affected NOx adsorption, storage, and release were investigated. Oxygen as a coreactant was necessary to maximize the conversion of NO to NO2 and condensation of NO2 within the pores of the carbons. A NO-to-NO2 conversion mechanism is presented and discussed relative to previous research. A process for selectively removing NOx and concentrating it as NO2 in an alternate process stream is outlined. The purified NO2 stream could be used for chemicals manufacturing.