In regard to gasification for power generation, the removal of mercury by sorbents at elevated temperatures preserves the higher thermal efficiency of the integrated gasification combined cycle system. Unfortunately, most sorbents display poor capacity for elemental mercury at elevated temperatures. Previous experience with sorbents in flue gas has allowed for judicious selection of potential high-temperature candidate sorbents. The capacities of many sorbents for elemental mercury from nitrogen, as well as from four different simulated fuel gases at temperatures of 204−371 °C, have been determined. The simulated fuel gas compositions contain varying concentrations of carbon monoxide, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, moisture, and hydrogen sulfide. Promising high-temperature sorbent candidates have been identified. Palladium sorbents seem to be the most promising for high-temperature capture of mercury and other trace elements from fuel gases. A collaborative research and development agreement has been initiated between the Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) and Johnson Matthey for optimization of the sorbents for trace element capture from high-temperature fuel gas. Future directions for mercury sorbent development for fuel gas application will be discussed.

Coal gasification with subsequent cleanup of the resulting fuel gas is a way to reduce the impact of mercury and arsenic in the environment during power generation and on downstream catalytic processes in chemical production. The interactions of mercury and arsenic with Pd/Al 2 0 3 model thin film sorbents and Pd/Al 2 Oj powders have been studied to determine the relative affinities of palladium for mercury and arsenic, and how they are affected by temperature and the presence of hydrogen sulfide in the fuel gas. The implications of the results on strategies for capturing the toxic metals using a sorbent bed are discussed.

Titanium dioxide is a well-known photooxidation catalyst. It will oxidize mercury in the presence of ultraviolet light from the sun and oxygen and/or moisture to form mercuric oxide. Several companies manufacture self-cleaning windows. These windows have a transparent coating of titanium dioxide. The titanium dioxide is capable of destroying organic contaminants in air in the presence of ultraviolet light from the sun, thereby keeping the windows clean. The commercially available self-cleaning windows were used to sequester mercury from oxygen-nitrogen mixtures. Samples of the self-cleaning glass were placed into specially designed photo-reactors in order to study the removal of elemental mercury from oxygen-nitrogen mixtures resembling air. The possibility of removing mercury from ambient air with a self-cleaning glass apparatus is examined. The intensity of 365-nm ultraviolet light was similar to the natural intensity from sunlight in the Pittsburgh region. Passive removal of mercury from the air may represent an option in lieu of, or in addition to, point source clean-up at combustion facilities. There are several common band-gap semiconductor oxide photocatalysts. Sunlight (both the ultraviolet and visible light components) and band-gap semiconductor particles may have a small impact on the global cycle of mercury in the environment. The potential environmental consequences of mercury interactions with band-gap semiconductor oxides are discussed. Heterogeneous photooxidation might impact the global transport of elemental mercury emanating from flue gases.