SGER: Membrane Contactor Reactors for Environmental Applications

CBET-0816330 Tsots这个用于探索研究的小额赠款(SGER)项目旨在开发一种催化反应器，以去除垃圾填埋气(LFG)中的有毒成分，以便将其用作替代能源。智力优势：在全国范围内，大约产生约1 MM ftP3P/分钟的垃圾填埋气。垃圾焚烧天然气可能是一种重要的可再生燃料，因为它通常含有50%以上的CHB4B。目前，LFG的很大一部分是燃烧的。其余的用于发电和中型BTU燃气型(例如，用于锅炉)应用。垃圾填埋气利用的主要障碍之一是其各种腐蚀性污染物，如卤素和含硫化合物，这些污染物需要频繁地对发电设备进行维修，并可能导致最终故障。最糟糕的是，在燃烧或发电过程中，卤素和含硫污染物被排放到大气中，极大地造成了空气污染，特别是酸雨。这些污染物在燃烧前从垃圾填埋气中去除是一个困难的问题，因为它们的浓度范围很广，而且它们的存在是微量的。这些因素给传统的清理技术带来了困难，事实证明，这些技术对垃圾填埋气的清理无效。PIS计划评估一种适用于垃圾填埋气清理的催化氧化技术，该技术基于“孔流反应器”(PoFR)的概念，该反应器具有氧化纳米催化剂。这是一个重要的目标，因为如果开发出一种经济高效地去除垃圾填埋气有毒污染物的工艺，就可以实现经济、环境和能源方面的优势。该项目的重点是对在这种反应器中发生的复杂反应和传输过程的基础研究；一项重大的基础科学进展将是理解和模拟垃圾焚烧中遇到的复杂杂原子化合物的催化燃烧。正是这种更好的基本理解将导致POFR概念的进一步技术发展所需的主要技术进步。该项目将与行业合作伙伴M&P和GCE合作开发。M&amp；P是一家致力于这些新材料的开发和应用的无机薄膜制造商。GCE是一家专业从事垃圾填埋气收集利用的工程公司。更广泛的影响：这个研究项目将为学生提供准备和表征新材料的机会，并学习大量最先进的计算和实验技术。该项目还将为参与其中的学生提供与工业研究人员互动的机会。南加州大学的城市环境提供了与该地区各种2-4年制大学合作的机会，其中几所大学主要是少数族裔院校。PIS计划招募合格的本科生作为暑期实习生，并可能作为即将到来的研究生。他们还将利用南加州大学不断发展的本科生课程计划，该计划强调纵向和横向整合的“学位项目”，由与每门核心化学工程课程相关的重点特定的实验/实验室模块组成。PIs设想将研究成果和他们工作的方方面面整合为反应堆分析、运输现象和分离课程的“学位项目”。这种催化反应器技术将经济有效地从垃圾焚烧天然气中去除有毒污染物，提供显著的经济、环境和能源优势，并将使垃圾焚烧天然气(以及整个沼气)充分发挥其作为宝贵的可再生燃料的潜力。

CBET-0816330TsotsisThis Small Grant for Exploratory Research (SGER) project is aimed at developing a catalytic reactor to remove toxic components of landfill gas (LFG) so that it can be used as an alternate source of energy.Intellectual Merit: Nationwide about ~1 MM ftP3P/min of LFG is generated. LFG is potentially an important renewable fuel, as it typically contains more than 50% CHB4B. At the present time a large fraction of LFG is flared. The rest is utilized for electric power generation, and for medium BTU gas-type (e.g., use in boilers) applications. One of the major roadblocks to the utilization of LFG is its miscellaneous corrosive contaminants, e.g., halogen and sulfur containing compounds, which necessitate frequent energy producing equipment servicing, and may lead to eventual failure. Worst of all, halogen and sulfur containing contaminants are emitted to the atmosphere, during flaring or energy production, contributing significantly to air pollution, particularly to acid rain. The removal of these contaminants from LFG prior to combustion is a difficult problem, because of their wide concentration range, and their presence at trace amounts. These factors present difficulties for conventional clean-up technologies, which have proven ineffective for LFG clean-up. The PIs plan to evaluate a catalytic oxidation technology appropriate for LFG clean-up, based on the concept of a "pore-flow reactor" (PoFR) endowed with an oxidation nanocatalyst. This is an important goal as economical, environmental, and energy advantages can be realized, if a process is developed that cost-effectively removes the LFG toxic contaminants. The emphasis in this project is on fundamental investigations of the complex reaction and transport processes that occur in such a reactor; a major fundamental scientific advance will be understanding and modeling the catalytic combustion of the complex heteroatom compounds encountered in LFG. It is such better fundamental understanding that will lead to the main technological advances needed for the further technical development of the PoFR concept. The project will be developed with collaboration with industrial partners M&P and GCE. M&P is an inorganic membrane manufacturer dedicated to the development and application of these novel materials. GCE is an Engineering Company specializing in LFG collection and utilization. Broader Impact: This research project will provide students with the opportunity to prepare and characterize novel new materials, and to learn a host of state-of-the-art computational and experimental techniques. The project will also provide the students involved with the opportunity to interact with industrial researchers. The urban setting of USC affords the opportunity to work with a variety of 2-4 year colleges in the area, several of which are predominantly minority Institutions. The PIs plan to recruit qualified undergraduates as summer interns, and potentially as incoming graduate students. They will also take advantage of the ever-evolving undergraduate curriculum program at USC, which emphasizes vertically- and horizontally-integrated "degree projects" consisting of emphasis-specific experimental/laboratory modules associated with each core Chemical Engineering course. The PIs envision integrating research findings and aspects of their work as the "degree projects? in the Reactor Analysis, Transport Phenomena, and Separation courses. This catalytic reactor technology will cost-effectively remove the toxic contaminants from LFG, offer significant economical, environmental, and energy advantages, and will allow LFG (and biogas in general) to gain its full potential as a valuable renewable fuel.