Conversion of the refractory ammonia and acetic acid in catalytic wet air oxidation of animal byproducts

Wet air oxidation (WAO) and catalytic wet air oxidation (CWAO) of slaughtered animal byproducts (ABPs) were investigated. Two step experiment was carried out consisting of a non-catalysedWAO run followed by a CWAO run at 170–275°C , 20 MPa, and reaction time 180 min. TheWAO (1st step) of sample (5 g/L total organic carbon (TOC)) yielded (82.0 4)% TOC removal and (78.4 13.2)% conversion of the initial organic-N into NH4 +-N. Four metal catalysts (Pd, Pt, Rh, Ru) supported over alumina have been tested in catalytic WAO (2nd step) at elevated pH to enhance ammonia conversion and organic matter removal, particularly acetic acid. It was found that the catalysts Ru, Pt, and Rh had significant e ects on the TOC removal (95.1%, 99.5% and 96.7%, respectively) and on the abatement of ammonia (93.4%, 96.7% and 96.3%, respectively) with high nitrogen selectivity. The catalyst Pd was found to have the less activity while Pt had the best performance. The X-Ray di raction analysis showed that the support of catalyst was not stable under the experimental conditions since it reacted with phosphate present in solution. Nitrite and nitrate ions were monitored during the oxidation reaction and it was concluded that CWAO of ammonia in real waste treatment framework was in good agreement with the results obtained from the literature for ideal solutions of ammonia.     

Kinetics study on catalytic wet air oxidation of phenol by several metal oxide catalysts

Four metal oxide catalysts composed of copper (Cu), stannum (Sn), copper-stannum (Cu-Sn) and copper-cerium(Cu-Ce) respectively were prepared by the co-impregnation method, and γ-alumina(γ-Al2O3 ) is selected as support. A first-order kinetics model was established to study the catalytic wet air oxidation of phenol at different temperature when these catalysts were used. The model simulations are good agreement with present experimental data. Results showed that the reaction rate constants can be significantly increased when catalysts were used, and the catalyst of 6% Cu-10% Ce/γ-Al2 O3 showed the best catalytic activity. This is consistent witht he result of catalytic wet air oxidation of phenol and the COD removal can be arrived at 98.2% at temperature 210℃, oxygen partial pressure 3 MPa and reaction time 30 rain. The activation energies of each reaction with different catalysts are nearly equal, which is found to be about 42 kJ/mol and the reaction in this study is proved to be kinetics control.     

Effects of metal and acidic sites on the reaction by-products of butyl acetate oxidation over palladium-based catalysts

Catalytic oxidation is widely used in pollution control technology to remove volatile organic compounds. In this study, Pd/ZSM-5 catalysts with different Pd contents and acidic sites were prepared via the impregnation method. All the catalysts were characterized by means of N2 adsorption- desorption, X-ray fluorescence （XRF）, HE temperature programmed reduction （H2-TPR）, and NH3 temperature programmed desorption （NH3-TPD）. Their catalytic performance was investigated in the oxidation of butyl acetate experiments. The by-products of the reaction were collected in thermal desorption tubes and identified by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. It was found that the increase of Pd content slightly changed the catalytic activity of butyl acetate oxidation according to the yield of CO2 achieved at 90%, but decreased the cracking by-products, whereas the enhancement of strong acidity over Pd-based catalysts enriched the by-product species. The butyl acetate oxidation process involves a series of reaction steps including protolysis, dehydrogenation, dehydration, cracking, and isomerization. Generally, butyl acetate was cracked to acetic acid and 2- methylpropene and the latter was an intermediate of the other by-products, and the oxidation routes of typical by-products were proposed. Trace amounts of 3-methylpentane, hexane, 2-methylpentane, pentane, and 2-methylbutane originated from iso4merization and protolysis reactions.     

Preparation and catalytic properties of ZrO2-Al2O3 composite oxide supported nickel catalysts for methane reforming with carbon dioxide

ZrO2-Al2O3 composite oxides and supported Ni catalysts were prepared, and characterized by N2 adsorption/desorption, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) techniques. The catalytic performance and carbon deposition was also investigated. This mesoporous composite oxide is shown to be a promising catalyst support. An increase in the catalytic activity and stability of methane and carbon dioxide reforming reaction was resulted from the zirconia addition, especially at 5wt% ZrO2 content. The Ni catalyst supported ZrO2-Al2O3 has a strong resistance to sintering and the carbon deposition in a relatively long-term reaction.     

Catalysts for decomposing ozone tail gas

The preparation of immobilizing-catalysts for decomposing ozone by using dipping method was studied. XRD, XPS and TEM were used to characterize the catalysts. The three kinds of catalysts were selected preferentially, and their catalytic activities were investigated. The results showed that the catalyst with activated carbon dipping acetate( active components are Mn:Cu = 3:2, active component proportion in catalyst is 15%, calcination temperature is 200℃ ) has the best catalytic activity for ozone decomposing. One gram of catalyst can decompose 17.6g ozone at initial ozone concentration of 2.5g/m^3 and the residence time in reactor of 0.1s. The experimental results also indicated that humidity of reaction system had negative effect on catalytic activity.     

Formaldehyde oxidation on Pd/USY catalysts at room temperature: The effect of acid pretreatment on supports

The complete catalytic oxidation of formaldehyde (HCHO) to CO₂ and H₂O at room temperature is a green route for indoor HCHO removal. Zeolite is an excellent carrier material for HCHO oxidation due to its large surface area, intricate pores and high adsorption capacity. However, the zeolite-supported noble metal catalysts have currently shown relatively low activity especially at room temperature. In this work, we present a facile acid treatment strategy for zeolite catalysts to improve the hydroxyl concentration and further enhance their catalytic activity for HCHO oxidation. Activity tests illustrated that HCHO could be completely oxidized to CO₂ and H₂O at a nearly 100% conversion rate with a weight hourly space velocity (WHSV) of 150,000 mL/(g∙hr) at 25°C, when the support of Pd/USY catalysts was pretreated by hydrochloric acid with a concentration of 0.20 mol/L. The characterization results revealed that the active hydroxyl groups originated from the dealumination in the acid treatment play a key role in the HCHO oxidation reaction. The deduced reaction mechanism suggests that bridging hydroxyl groups may oxidize HCHO to dioxymethylene (DOM) species and terminal hydroxyl groups are responsible for the transformation of DOM groups to formate (HCOO) species.     

Catalytic wet air oxidation for the treatment of emulsifying wastewater

The wet air oxidation (WAO) and catalytic WAO(CWAO) of the high strength emulsifying wastewater containing nonionic surfactants have been investigated in terms of COD and TOC removal. The WAO and homogeneous CWAO processes were carried out at the temperature from 433 K to 513 K, with initial oxygen pressure 1.2 MPa. It was found that homogeneous catalyst copper(Cu(NO3)2) had an fairly good catalytic activity for the WAO process, and the oxidation was catalyzed when the temperature was higher than 473K. Moreover, several heterogeneous catalysts were proved to be effective for the WAO process. At the temperature 473 K, after 2h reaction, WAO process could achieve about 75% COD removal and 66% TOC removal, while catalysts Cu/Al2O3 and Mn-Ce/Al2O3 elevated the COD removal up to 86%-89% and that of TOC up to 82%. However, complete elimination of COD and TOC was proved to be difficult even the best non-noble catalyst was used. Therefore, the effluent from WAO or CWAO process need to be further disposed. The bioassay proved that the effluent from WAO process was amenable to the biochemical method.     

The balance of acidity and redox capability over modified CeO2 catalyst for the selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH3

The effect of acidity and redox capability over sulfuric acid-modified CeO_2 catalysts were studied for the selective catalytic reduction of NO_x with NH_3(NH_3-SCR). The deposition of sulfate significantly enhanced the catalytic performance over CeO_2. NO_x conversion over4H_2SO_4/CeO_2 at 230–440 °C was higher than 90%. The strong redox capability of CeO_2 could result in unselective NH_3 oxidation and decrease high temperatures catalytic activity and N_2 selectivity. The deposition of sulfate increased the acidity and weakened the redox capability, and then increased the high temperature NO_x conversion and N_2 selectivity. An appropriate level of acidity also promoted the activity at 190–250 °C over ceria-based catalysts, and with further increase in the acidity, the SCR activity decreased slightly. Weak redox capability lowered the low-temperature catalytic activity. Excellent SCR activity requires a balance of acidity and redox capability on the catalysts.     

Fe2O3 particles as superior catalysts for low temperature selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH3

Fe203 particle catalysts were experimentally studied in the low temperature selective catalytic reduction （SCR） of NO with NH3. The effects of reaction temperature, oxygen concentration, [NH3]/[NO] molar ratio and residence time on SCR activity were studied. It was found that Fe203 catalysts had high activity for the SCR of NO with NH3 in a broad temperature range of 150-270℃, and more than 95% NO conversion was obtained at 180℃ when the molar ratio [NH3]/[NO] = 1, the residence time was 0.48 seconds and 02 volume fraction was 3%. In addition, the effect of SO2 on SCR catalytic activity was also investigated at the temperature of 180℃. The results showed that deactivation of the Fe2O3 particles occurred due to the presence of SO2 and the NO conversion decreased from 99.2% to 58% in 240 min, since SO2 gradually decreased the catalytic activity of the catalysts. In addition, X-ray diffraction, Thermogravimetric analysis and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were used to characterize the fresh and deactivated Fe2O3 catalysts. The results showed that the deactivation caused by SO2 was due to the formation of metal sulfates and ammonium sulfates on the catalyst surface during the de-NO reaction, which could cause pore plugging and result in suppression of the catalytic activity.     

Simultaneous catalytic removal of NOx and diesel soot particulate over perovskite-type oxides and supported Ag catalysts

A series of perovskite-type oxides and supported Ag catalysts were prepared,and characterized by X-ray diffraction (CRD)and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS).The catalytic activities of the catalysts as well as influencing factors on catalytic activity have been investigated for the simultaneous removal of NOx and diesel soot particulate.An increase in catalytic activity for the selective reduction of NOx was observed with Ag addition in these perovskite oxides,especially with 5% Ag loading.This catalyst could be a promising candidate of catalytic material for the simultaneous elimination of NOx and diesel soot.     

Low-temperature conversion of ammonia to nitrogen in water with ozone over composite metal oxide catalyst

As one of the most important water pollutants, ammonia nitrogen emissions have increased year by year, which has attracted people's attention. Catalytic ozonation technology, which involves production of ·OH radical with strong oxidation ability, is widely used in the treatment of organic-containing wastewater. In this work, MgO-Co_3O_4 composite metal oxide catalysts prepared with different fabrication conditions have been systematically evaluated and compared in the catalytic ozonation of ammonia(50 mg/L) in water. In terms of high catalytic activity in ammonia decomposition and high selectivity for gaseous nitrogen, the catalyst with MgO-Co_3O_4 molar ratio 8:2, calcined at 500°C for 3 hr, was the best one among the catalysts we tested, with an ammonia nitrogen removal rate of 85.2% and gaseous nitrogen selectivity of44.8%. In addition, the reaction mechanism of ozonation oxidative decomposition of ammonia nitrogen in water with the metal oxide catalysts was discussed. Moreover, the effect of coexisting anions on the degradation of ammonia was studied, finding that SO_2-4 and HCO-3 could inhibit the catalytic activity while CO_2-3 and Br-could promote it. The presence of coexisting cations had very little effect on the catalytic ozonation of ammonia nitrogen. After five successive reuses, the catalyst remained stable in the catalytic ozonation of ammonia.     

Advanced treatment of biologically pretreated coal gasification wastewater by a novel heterogeneous Fenton oxidation process

Sewage sludge from a biological wastewater treatment plant was converted into sewage sludge based activated carbon(SBAC) with Zn Cl2 as activation agent, which was used as a support for ferric oxides to form a catalyst(Fe Ox/SBAC) by a simple impregnation method.The new material was then used to improve the performance of Fenton oxidation of real biologically pretreated coal gasification wastewater(CGW). The results indicated that the prepared Fe Ox/SBAC significantly enhanced the pollutant removal performance in the Fenton process, so that the treated wastewater was more biodegradable and less toxic. The best performance was obtained over a wide p H range from 2 to 7, temperature 30°C, 15 mg/L of H2O2 and 1 g/L of catalyst, and the treated effluent concentrations of COD, total phenols,BOD5 and TOC all met the discharge limits in China. Meanwhile, on the basis of significant inhibition by a radical scavenger in the heterogeneous Fenton process as well as the evolution of FT-IR spectra of pollutant-saturated Fe Ox/BAC with and without H2O2, it was deduced that the catalytic activity was responsible for generating hydroxyl radicals, and a possible reaction pathway and interface mechanism were proposed. Moreover, Fe Ox/SBAC showed superior stability over five successive oxidation runs. Thus, heterogeneous Fenton oxidation of biologically pretreated CGW by Fe Ox/SBAC, with the advantages of being economical, efficient and sustainable, holds promise for engineering application.     

Palladium-phosphinous acid complexes catalyzed Suzuki cross-coupling reaction of heteroaryl bromides with phenylboronic acid in water/alcoholic solvents

Highly active, air-stable and water-soluble palladium-phosphinous acid complexes have been applied to Suzuki cross-coupling reaction of heteroaryl bromides under mild conditions in water/alcoholic solvents. Suzuki cross-coupling reaction of heteroaryl bromides with phenylboronic acid occurred efficiently using palladium phosphinous acid complexes (POPd) and phase transfer catalyst (tetrabutylammonium bromide and polyethylene glycol) in water/ethanol mixture, water/propanol mixture and neat water respectively, the corresponding yields of cross-coupling heteroaryl-aryls were satisfied. The tert-butyl substituted ligand di-tert-butylphosphino in combination with POPd was found to be more active than the same family derived catalysts dipalladium complexes POPd1 and POPd2, and other two kinds of Pd-catalysts Pd(PPh₃)₄ and Pd₂(dba)₃. The mechanism of Suzuki cross-coupling reaction between heteroaryl bromides and phenylboronic acid in water was proposed with respect to the key role of phase transfer catalyst on the transmetallation step. Compared with other solid phase transfer catalysts, TBAB was tested as the ideal one. The alkalinity of base and the molar proportion between POPd and TBAB were investigated in water and alcoholic solvents. Notably, in the presence of TBAB adding alcoholic solvents into water enhanced the yields of target products. However in terms of the liquid phase transfer catalyst of PEGs, mixing water into PEGs could slightly decrease the yields with respect to the water free PEGs bulk phase, which was probably due to the homogenous liquid conditions in pure PEGs and weak interactions between PEGs and heteroaryl bromide molecules in water depending on their molecular chain lengths.     

Improved dark ambient degradation of organic pollutants by cerium strontium cobalt perovskite

This work investigates the effect of cerium substation into strontium cobalt perovskites(CeSrCoO) for the oxidative degradation of Orange Ⅱ(OII) in dark ambient conditions without the aid of any external stimulants such as light,heating or chemical additives.The OII degradation rate by CeSrCoO reached 65% in the first hour,whilst for the blank sample without cerium(SrCoO) took over 2 hr to reach the same level of OII degradation.Hence,the cerium substitution improved the catalytic activity of the perovskite material,mainly associated with the Ce_(0.1)Sr_(0.9)CoO_3 perovskite phase.Upon contacting CeSrCoO,the-N=Nazo bonds of the OII molecules broke down resulting in electron donation and the formation of by-products.The electrons are injected into the CeSrCoO and resulted in a redox pair of Co~(3+)/Co~(2+),establishing a bridge for the electron transfer between OII and the catalysts.Concomitantly,the electrons also formed reactive species(·OH) responsible for OII degradation as evidenced by radical trapping experiment.Reactive species were formed via the reaction between 02 and donated electrons from OII with the aid of cobalt redox pair.As the prepared materials dispensed with the need for light irradiation and additional oxidants,it opens a window of environmental applications for treating contaminated wastewaters.     

N2O decomposition over K/Na-promoted Mg/Zn-Ce-cobalt mixed oxides catalysts

Three groups of cobalt mixed oxide catalysts（Mg/Zn-Co, Mg/Zn-Ce-C, K/Na-Mg/Zn-Ce-Co）were prepared by sol-gel or impregnation methods. The synergistic effects of transition metal, rare earth metal and alkali metal on cobalt mixed catalysts for nitrous oxide（N2O）decomposing to N2 and O2were investigated. The experimental results revealed that the catalytic activity for N2 O decomposition was promoted as Co2＋was replaced partially by Zn2＋/Mg2＋, moreover, the characterization analysis by XRD and XPS showed that Zn2＋/Mg2＋replaced Co2＋successfully into the spinel structure of Co3O4 and promoted significantly the catalytic activity. Especially, the addition of CeO2 and K2O/Na2O decreased the binding energy and resulted in an increase in the density of the electron cloud around Co and an improvement of the catalytic activity. Of the investigated cobalt mixed catalysts, the best catalytic activity was shown by 2% K-Zn0.5-Ce0.05-Co catalyst.     

Application of multiwalled carbon nanotubes treated by potassium permanganate for determination of trace cadmium prior to flame atomic absorption spectrometry

In this study we investigated the enrichment ability of oxidized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and established a new method for the determination of trace cadmium in environment with flame atomic absorption spectrometry.The MWCNTs were oxidized by potassium permanganate under appropriate conditions before use as preconcentration packing.Parameters influencing the recoveries of target analytes were optimized.Under optimal conditions,the target analyte exhibited a good linearity (R~2=0.9992) over the concentration range 0.5-50 ng/ml.The detection limit and precision of the proposed method were 0.15 ng/ml and 2.06%, respectively.The proposed method was applied to the determination of cadmium in real-world environmental samples and the recoveries were in the range of 91.3%-108.0%.All these experimental results indicated that this new procedure could be applied to the determination of trace cadmium in environmental waters.     

Catalytic removal of phenol from gas streams by perovskite-type catalysts

Three perovskite-type catalysts prepared by citric acid method are applied to remove phenol from gas streams with the total flow rate of 300 mL/min, corresponding to a GHSV of10,000/hr. LaMnO_3 catalyst is first prepared and further partially substituted with Sr and Cu to prepare La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)MnO_3 and La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)Mn_(0.8)Cu_(0.2)O_3, and catalytic activities and fundamental characteristics of these three catalysts are compared. The results show that phenol removal efficiency achieved with La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)Mn_(0.8)Cu_(0.2)O_3 reaches 100% with the operating temperature of 200°C and the rate of mineralization at 300°C is up to 100%, while the phenol removal efficiencies achieved with La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)MnO_3 and LaMnO_3 are up to 100% with the operating temperature of 300°C and 400°C, respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) analysis shows that the addition of Sr and Cu increases the lattice oxygen of La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)Mn_(0.8)Cu_(0.2)O_3, and further increases mobility or availability of lattice oxygen. The results indicate that La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)Mn_(0.8)Cu_(0.2)O_3 has the best activity for phenol removal among three catalysts prepared and the catalytic activity of phenol oxidation is enhanced by the introduction of Sr and Cu into LaMnO_3. Apparent activation energy of 48 k J/mol is calculated by Mars–Van Krevelen Model for phenol oxidation with La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)Mn_(0.8)Cu_(0.2)O_3 as catalyst.     

Phosphatase activity and culture conditions of the yeast Candida mycoderma sp. and analysis of organic phosphorus hydrolysis ability

Orthophosphate is an essential but limiting macronutrient for plant growth. About 67% cropland in China lacks sufficient phosphorus, especially that with red soil. Extensive soil phosphorus reserves exist in the form of organic phosphorus, which is unavailable for root uptake unless hydrolyzed by secretory acid phosphatases. Thus, many microorganisms with the ability to produce phosphatase have been exploited. In this work, the activity of an extracellular acid phosphatase and yeast biomass from Candida mycoderma was measured under different culture conditions, such as pH, temperature, and carbon source. A maximal phosphatase activity of 8.47 × 10^5±0.11× 10^5 U/g was achieved by C. Mycoderma in 36 hr under the optimal conditions. The extracellular acid phosphatase has high activity over a wide pH tolerance range from 2.5 to S.0 （optimum pH 3.5）. The effects of different phosphorus compounds on the acid phosphatase production were also studied. The presence of phytin, lecithin or calcium phosphate reduced the phosphatase activity and biomass yield significantly. In addition, the pH of the culture medium was reduced significantly by lecithin. The efficiency of the strain in releasing orthophosphate from organic phosphorus was studied in red soil （used in planting trees） and rice soil （originating as red soil）. The available phosphorus content was increased by 230% after inoculating 20 days in rice soil and decreased by 50% after inoculating 10 days in red soil. This work indicates that the yeast strain C. mycoderma has potential application for enhancing phosphorus utilization in plants that grow in rice soil.     

Rapid determination of phenolic compounds in water samples by alternating-current oscillopolarographic titration

A rapid, simple and sensitive method was demonstrated for the determination of phenolic compounds in water samples by alternating-current oscillopolarographic titration. With the presence of sulfuric acid, phenol could be transferred into a nitroso-compound by reacting with NaNO2. The titration end-point was obtained by the formation of a sharp cut in the oscillopolarographic with infinitesimal NaNO2 on double platinum electrodes. The results showed that phenol concentration had an excellent linear relationship over the range of 4.82×10-6-9.65×10-3 mol/L, the RSD of the proposed method was lower than 1.5%, and the spiked recoveries of three real water samples were in the range of 95.6%-106.9%.     

Urgently reveal longly hidden toxicant in a familiar fabrication process of biomass-derived environment carbon material

Biomass-derived N-doped carbon (BNC) is an important environmental material and widely used in the fields of water purification and soil remediation. However, the toxicant in the commonly used synthesis process of BNC materials have been largely ignored. Herein, we firstly report the presence of a highly toxic by-product (KCN) in the activation process of BNC materials consequential of the carbothermal reduction reaction. Because this carbothermal reduction reaction also regulates the N-doping and pore development of BNC materials, the KCN content directly relates with the properties of BNC material properties. Accordingly, a high KCN content (∽ 611 mg) can occur in the production process of per g BNC material with high specific surface area (∽ 3600 m²/g). Because the application performance of BNC material is determined by the surface area and available N doping, therefore, production of a BNC material with high performance entails high risk. Undoubtedly, this study proves a completely new risk recognition on a familiar synthesis process of biomass-based material. And, strict protective device should be taken in fabrication process of biomass-derived carbon material.