Abstract: Gas-solid vortex chambers are a promising alternative for reactive and non-reactive processes requiring enhanced heat and mass transfer rates and order-of-milliseconds contact time. The conservation of angular momentum is instrumental in understanding how the interactions between gas, particulate solids, and chamber walls influence the formation of a rotating solids bed. Therefore, this work applies the conservation of angular momentum to derive a model that gives the average angular velocity of solids in terms of gas injection velocity, wall-solids bed drag coefficient, gas and particle properties, and chamber geometry. Three datasets from published studies, comprising 1 g-Geldart B- and d-type particles in different vortex chambers, validate the model results. Using a sensitivity analysis, we assessed the effect of input variables on the average angular velocity of solids, average void fraction, and average bed height. Results indicate that the top and bottom end-wall boundaries exert the most significant braking effect on the rotating solids bed compared with the cylindrical outer wall and gas injection boundaries. The wall-solids bed drag coefficient appears independent of the gas injection velocity for a wide range of operating conditions. The proposed model is a valuable tool for analyzing and comparing gas–solid vortex typologies, unraveling improvement opportunities, and scale-up.

Abstract: The development of biomass pretreatment approaches that, next to (hemi)cellulose valorization, aim at the conversion of lignin to chemicals is essential for the long-term success of a biorefinery. Herein, we discuss a dithionite-assisted organosolv fractionation (DAOF) of lignocellulose in n-butanol and water to produce cellulosic pulp and mono-/oligo-aromatics. The study frames the technicalities of this biorefinery process and relates them to the features of the obtained product streams. We comprehensively identify and quantify all products of interest: solid pulp (acid hydrolysis-HPLC, ATR-FTIR, XRD, SEM, enzymatic hydrolysis-HPLC), lignin derivatives (GPC, GC-MS/FID, 1H-13C HSQC NMR, ICP-AES), and carbohydrate derivatives (HPLC). These results were used for inspecting the economic feasibility of DAOF. In the best process configuration, a high yield of monophenolics was reached (~20%, based on acid insoluble lignin in birch sawdust). Various other lignocellulosic feedstocks were also explored, showing that DAOF is particularly effective on hardwood and herbaceous biomass. Overall, this study demonstrates that DAOF is a viable fractionation method for the sustainable upgrading of lignocellulosic biomass.

Abstract: Activated carbon fibers for indoor air purification were investigated by means of pressure drop and adsorption capacity. The Darcy-Forchheimer law combined with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling was deployed to simulate the pressure drop over an activated carbon fiber (ACF) filter with varying filter thickness. The CFD model was later combined with adsorption modelling to simulate breakthrough profiles of acetaldehyde adsorption on the ACF-filter. The adsorption model incorporates mass transfer resistance and adsorption equilibrium. It assumes local equilibrium between gas phase and solid phase. The latter was investigated for three different adsorption isotherms: linear, Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption. Successful agreement between model simulations and experimental data was obtained, using the Freundlich adsorption model. The numerical model could provide valuable insights and allows to continuously improve the design of filtration devices.

Abstract: A novel heap leaching method was investigated for selective removal of chromium (Cr) and-vanadium (V) from ferrochromium (FeCr) and stainless steel (SS) slags. In particular, alkaline oxidative heap leaching was simulated on lab-scale by batch and column leaching tests. The results show a selective leaching of Cr (11-19%) and V (7.0-7.5%) after 64 days of column leaching, with a very low dissolution (<2.2% (FeCr slag) and <0.15% (SS slag)) of matrix elements (e.g. Al, Fe, Si, Mg, Ca), when NaOCl is applied as oxidation agent and NaOH as alkaline agent. Furthermore, the used leaching liquor is reactive for a longer period of time, indicating that circulation of leaching liquor could be possible. Finally, the experimental results were fed into a first-order model which predicts that Cr will continue to leach from the tested slags for 4-5 years at a chosen infiltration rate of 73,000 l/(y m(2)). (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Abstract: Converting waste associated natural gas from oil fields is uneconomic with current gas-to-liquid technology. Micro Gas-to-Liquids technology ( GtL) combines process intensification and numbering up economics to reduce capital costs to convert flared and vented natural gas to value-added synthetic fuel: Milli-second contact times in the catalytic partial oxidation of methane (CPOX) integrated with a tandem Fischer-Tropsch (FT) step meets the economic constraints together with remote process control. FeCralloy knitted fibres with high thermal conductivity and low pressure drop, resist thermal and mechanical stresses in the high pressure CPOX step. The FeCralloy catalysts are free of pre-reduction treatments. We deposited Pt and/or CeO2 over the fibre surface via solution combustion synthesis. Methane conversion was higher at ambient pressure compared to 2 MPa while the Pt/CeO2 FeCralloy was relatively inert from 0.1 MPa to 2 MPa. However, both catalysts demonstrated high activity in quasi-chemical looping partial oxidation of methane: during the reduction step while feeding methane, an on-line mass spectrometer only detected H2 while in the oxidation step it detected predominantly CO. Kinetic modeling of the oxidation-reduction cycles suggests that the reaction follows a direct mechanism to produce CO and H2 rather than an indirect mechanism that first produces CO2 and H2O followed by reforming.

Abstract: An unbiased photo-fuel cell (PFC) is a device that integrates the functions of a photoanode and a cathode to achieve simultaneous light-driven oxidation and dark reduction reactions. As such, it generates electricity while degrading pollutants like volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The photoanode is excited by light to generate electron-hole pairs, which give rise to a photocurrent, and are utilized to oxidise organic pollutants simultaneously. Here we have systematically studied various TiO2/WO3 photoanodes towards their photocatalytic soot degradation performance, PFC performance in the presence of VOCs, and the combination of both. The latter thus mimics an urban environment where VOCs and soot are present simultaneously. The formation of a type-II heterojunction after the addition of a thin TiO2 top layer over a dense WO3 bottom layer, improved both soot oxidation efficiency as well as photocurrent generation, thus paving the way towards low-cost PFC technology for energy recovery from real polluted air.

Abstract: Resource-efficient nitrogen management is of high environmental and economic interest, and manure represents the major nutrient flow in livestock-intensive regions. Ammonia stripping/scrubbing (SS) is an appealing nitrogen recovery route from manure, yet its real-life implementation has been limited thus far. In nutrient surplus regions like Flanders, treatment of the liquid fraction (LF) of (co–)digested manure typically consists of nitrification/denitrification (NDN) removing most N as nitrogen gas. Integrating SS before NDN in existing plants would expand treatment capacity and recover N while maintaining low N effluent values, yet cost estimations of this novel approach after process optimisation are not yet available. A programming model was developed and calibrated to minimise the treatment costs of this approach and find the balance between N recovery versus N removal. Four crucial operational parameters (CO2 stripping time, NH3 stripping time, temperature and NaOH addition) were optimised for 18 scenarios which were different in terms of technical set-up, influent characteristics and scrubber acid. The model shows that SS before NDN can decrease the costs by 1 to 56% under optimal conditions compared to treatment with NDN only, with 1 to 8% reduction for the LF of manure (22–29% recovered of N treated), and 11 to 56% reduction for the LF of co-digested manure (42–67% recovered of N treated), primarily dependent on resource pricing. This study shows the power of modelling for minimum-cost design and operation of manure treatment yielding savings while producing useful N recovery products with SS followed by NDN.

Abstract: To support experimental research into gas conversion by warm plasmas, models should be developed to explain the experimental observations. These models need to describe all physical and chemical plasma properties in a coupled way. In this paper, we present a modelling approach to solve the complete set of assumed relevant equations, including gas flow, heat balance and species transport, coupled with a rather extensive chemistry set, consisting of 21 species, obtained by reduction of a more detailed chemistry set, consisting of 41 species. We apply this model to study the combined CO2 and CH4 conversion in the presence of O2, in a direct current atmospheric pressure glow discharge. Our model can predict the experimental trends, and can explain why higher O2 fractions result in higher CH4 conversion, namely due to the higher gas temperature, rather than just by additional chemical reactions. Indeed, our model predicts that when more O2 is added, the energy required to reach any set temperature (i.e., the enthalpy) drops, allowing the system to reach higher temperatures with similar amounts of energy. This is in turn related to the higher H2O fraction and lower H2 fraction formed in the plasma, as demonstrated by our model. Altogether, our new self-consistent model can capture the main physics and chemistry occurring in this warm plasma, which is an important step towards predictive modelling for plasma-based gas conversion.

Abstract: Utilizing ammonia as a storage medium for hydrogen is currently receiving increased attention. A possible method to retrieve the hydrogen is by plasma-catalytic decomposition. In this work, we combined an experimental study, using a dielectric barrier discharge plasma reactor, with a plasma kinetic model, to get insights into the decomposition mechanism. The experimental results revealed a similar effect on the ammonia conversion when changing the flow rate and power, where increasing the specific energy input (higher power or lower flow rate) gave an increased conversion. A conversion as high as 82 % was achieved at a specific energy input of 18 kJ/Nl. Furthermore, when changing the discharge volume from 31 to 10 cm3, a change in the plasma distribution factor from 0.2 to 0.1 was needed in the model to best describe the conversions of the experiments. This means that a smaller plasma volume caused a higher transfer of energy through micro-discharges (non-uniform plasma), which was found to promote the decomposition of ammonia. These results indicate that it is the collisions between NH3 and the high-energy electrons that initiate the decomposition. Moreover, the rate of ammonia destruction was found by the model to be in the order of 1022 molecules/(cm3 s) during the micro-discharges, which is 5 to 6 orders of magnitude higher than in the afterglows. A considerable re-formation of ammonia was found to take place in the afterglows, limiting the overall conversion. In addition, the model revealed that implementation of packing material in the plasma introduced high concentrations of surface-bound hydrogen atoms, which introduced an additional ammonia re-formation pathway through an Eley-Rideal reaction with gas phase NH2. Furthermore, a more uniform plasma is predicted in the presence of MgAl2O4, which leads to a lower average electron energy during micro-discharges and a lower conversion (37 %) at a comparable residence time for the plasma alone (51 %).

Abstract: Nitrate contamination of groundwater has been recognized as a significant environmental problem world widely. Sulfur-driven mixotrophic denitrification has been demonstrated as a promising groundwater treatment process, which though plays an important role in nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions, significantly contributing to the overall carbon footprint of the system. However, the current process optimizations only focus on nitrate removal and excess sulfate control, with the N2O emission being ignored. In this work, an integrated mathematical model was proposed to evaluate the N2O emission as well as the excess sulfate production and carbon source utilization in sulfur-driven mixotrophic denitrification process. In this model, autotrophic and heterotrophic denitrifiers use their corresponding electron donors (sulfur and organic matter, respectively) to reduce nitrate to nitrogen gas, with each modeled as three-step denitrification (NO3 to N-2 via NO2 and N2O) driven by sulfur or organic matter to describe all potential N2O accumulation steps. The developed model, employing model parameters previously reported in literature, was successfully validated using N2O and sulfate data from two mixotrophic denitrification systems with different initial conditions. Modeling results revealed substantial N2O accumulation due to the relatively low autotrophic N2O reduction activity as compared to heterotrophic N2O reduction activity, explaining the observation that higher carbon source addition resulted in lower N2O accumulation in sulfur-driven mixotrophic denitrifying system. Based on the validated model, optimizations of the overall system performance were carried out. Application of the model to simulate long-term operations of sulfur-driven mixotrophic denitrification process indicates that longer sludge retention time reduces N2O emission due to better retention of active biomass. High-level total nitrogen removal with significant N2O emission mitigation, appropriate excess sulfate control and maximized COD utilization can be achieved simultaneously through controlling the influent nitrate and COD concentrations. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Abstract: Sensitive multi-element analysis techniques together with major-element and isotopic analyses were applied to spring, mine and surface waters in the vicinity of an important known zinclead deposit in a carbonate environment, in the Les Malines area (Gard, France). Both the dissolved and suspended phases were investigated, and concretions and sediments were also considered in some cases. This methodological test shows that the ore body leaves various clear fingerprints, such as the Zn, As, Sb, Pb and U levels in the dissolved phase, the sulfate increment and the δ 34S. Some of the elements in solution are controlled by slightly soluble compounds, e.g. Zn by smithsonite and hydrozincite, Ba by barite, and Pb by hydrocerussite. Mapping the saturation indices for these elements appears useful for displaying the hydrogeochemical anomaly.

Abstract: Composition of bed, core and suspended sediments collected from Krishna River sediments were studied and the observations are discussed in the light of other Indian rivers, world's average river suspended particles, surficial rock and soils. The contents of V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn in the suspended particles are higher in the Krishna River than in the world's average, indicating pollution inputs. Suspended sediments are enriched (5 to 10 times) in all the elements considered relative to bed sediments. Downstream profile and metal/Al ratios of the elements indicate that the mobility of elements within the basin is controlled by basin geology, size and mineralogical characteristics. Good correlations observed for a number of elements point out to their common sink in the clay fraction of the sediments. There is no systematic variation with depth for the major elements and most of the elements are considerably higher compared to estuarine or Bay of Bengal sediments.

Abstract: Using first-principles calculations we investigate the interaction of various molecules, including H-2, N-2, CO, CO2, H2O, H2S, NH3, CH4 with a C3N nanosheet. Due to the weaker interaction between H-2, N-2, CO, CO2, H2O, H2S, NH3, and CH4 molecules with C3N, the adsorption energy is small and does not yield any significant distortion of the C3N lattice and the molecules are physisorbed. Calculated charge transfer shows that these molecules act as weak donors. However, adsorption of O-2, NO, NO2 and SO2 molecules are chemisorbed, they receive electrons from C3N and act as a strong acceptor. They interact strongly through hybridizing its frontier orbitals with the p-orbital of C3N, modifying the electronic structure of C3N. Our theoretical studies indicate that C3N-based sensor has a high potential for O-2, NO, NO2 and SO2 molecules detection.

Abstract: Several structures and electronic states of the C2N and CN2 molecules have been studied using complete active space SCF (CASSCF), multireference configuration interaction (MRCI), and coupled cluster (CCSD(T)) methods. Both molecules are very stable. Our best computed total atomization energies SIGMAD(e) are 288.6 +/- 2 kcal/mol for CN2, and 294.1 +/- 2 kcal/mol for C2N. The CNC and CCN structures for C2N are nearly isoenergetic. CNN(3PI) lies about 30 kcal/mol above NCN(3PI(g)), but has a high barrier towards interconversion and is therefore observed experimentally. Computed harmonic frequencies for CNN are sensitive to the correlation treatment: they are reproduced well using multireference methods as well as the CCSD(T) method. High spin contamination has a detrimental effect on computed harmonic frequencies at the CCSD(T) level.