Development of novel absorbents for CO2 capture from blast furnace gas

In order to establish energy-saving technology for CO₂ capture from blast furnace gas, novel absorbents were developed in the laboratory and evaluated at a 1 t_CO2/d test plant. At first, CO₂ absorption and desorption behaviors of single-component amine solvents for simulated blast furnace gas (CO₂/N₂ = 20%/80%) were investigated through a screening test using a small scrubbing bottle. These amine solvents were additionally analyzed using nuclear magnetic resonance (¹³C NMR) spectroscopy and reaction calorimetry. The results of the laboratory experiments showed that there was a trade-off between absorption rate and enthalpy of absorption but some absorbents had unique features. For example, 2-isopropylaminoethanol (IPAE) had high absorption rate and small enthalpy of absorption. Then, new IPAE-based amine solvents (RITE solvents: RITE-A and RITE-B) were formulated and evaluated at the 1 t_CO2/d test plant. CO₂ regeneration energies of the RITE solvents were 3.3 and 3.1 GJ/t_CO2, respectively. With certain process conditions and plant specifications optimized, RITE-B was estimated to have the potential to achieve 2.5 GJ/t_CO2.     

Development, validation, and uncertainty measurement of multi-residue analysis of organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticides using pressurized liquid extraction and dispersive-SPE techniques

Increased water use associated with rapid growth in the Las Vegas Valley has inadvertently led to the creation of unique wetland systems in Southern Nevada with an abundance of biological diversity. Constructed and naturally created wetlands in the Las Vegas Valley watershed were studied to characterize and understand their potential role for improving ecosystem services (i.e., water purification). Nutrient and metal removal was assessed at four sites including a natural urban runoff wetland, a constructed urban runoff wetland, a constructed wastewater wetland, and a natural urban runoff/wastewater wetland. Plant nutrient uptake was dependent on ambient nutrient concentrations in water and sediments of specific wetlands, irrespective of the type of plants present. Phosphorus was mostly concentrated in below-ground plant parts whereas nitrogen was concentrated in above-ground parts. As for metalloids, bulrushes were more efficient than cattails at taking up arsenic and selenium. Averaging all the wetland sites and plant species, total nitrogen, phosphorus, arsenic and selenium removal was 924.2, 61.5, 0.30, and 0.38 kg/ha/year, respectively. Our findings suggest that natural and created wetland systems can improve water quality in the Las Vegas Valley watershed for some common pollutants, however, other measures are still needed to improve water quality below regulatory thresholds.     

Gasification applicability study of polyurethane solid refuse fuel fabricated from electric waste by measuring syngas and nitrogenous pollutant gases

To recycle polyurethane foam waste generated from electric appliance recycling centers for use as fuel in a gasification process, polyurethane solid refuse fuel fabricated as pellets was analyzed for the characteristics of elemental composition, proximate analysis, heating value, and thermo-gravimetric testing. It has a high heating value of 29.06 MJ/kg with a high content of combustibles, which could be feasibly used in any thermal process. However, the nitrogen content, of up to 7 %, was comparably higher than for other fuels such as coal, biomass, and refuse-derived fuel, and may result in the emission of nitrogenous pollutant gases of HCN and NH₃. By conducting gasification experiments on polyurethane solid refuse fuel in a fixed-bed reactor, a syngas with a heating value of 9.76 kJ/m³ and high content of both H₂ and CO were produced with good gasification efficiency; carbon conversion 54 %, and cold gas efficiency 60 %. The nitrogenous pollutant gases in syngas were measured at the concentrations of 160 ppm hydrogen cyanide and 40 ppm ammonia, which may have to be reduced using proper cleaning technologies prior to the commercialization of gasification technology for polyurethane waste.     

Microalgae binary culture for higher biomass production,nutrients recycling,and efficient harvesting: a review

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Microalgae are photosynthetic cell factories of global interest for fuels, food, feed, bioproducts, carbon sequestration, waste mitigation, and environmental...     

Salt marsh restoration: an overview of techniques and success indicators

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Coastal wetlands including salt marshes are among the most productive ecosystems on Earth. They are known for improving the quality of coastal water...     

Gibberellic acid and urease inhibitor optimize nitrogen uptake and yield of maize at varying nitrogen levels under changing climate

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Worldwide, nitrogen (N) deficiency is the main yield limiting factor owing to its losses via leaching and volatilization. Urease inhibitors slow down...     

Developing empirical model for heating value of MSW to assess waste-to-energy incineration feasibility: study in Dhaka city

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - Feasibility of waste-to-energy (WtE) incineration in municipal solid waste (MSW) management is hindered by low lower heating value $$(LHV)$$ . This...