Decomposition of Volatile Organic Compounds at Low Concentrations Using Combination of Densification by Zeolite Adsorption and Dielectric Barrier Discharge

Abstract

The decomposition of toluene at very low concentrations (10–20 ppm) using a combination of densification by zeolite adsorption and dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) was investigated. The characteristics of toluene decomposition using DBD under open and closed-loop flow conditions were determined. Under the closed-loop gas flow condition, a high decomposition ratio (70–93%) and a high energy efficiency [8–19 g/(kW h)] were achieved for the adsorbed toluene (63% of the initial amount) by DBD treatment even at a high flow rate of 150 L/min. Also, by the periodic operation of adsorption/DBD treatment, it was demonstrated that DBD treatment regenerated the honeycomb sheet containing zeolites for subsequent adsorption. The usefulness of this method for the decomposition of hazardous materials at low concentrations was shown.

Simulataneous pentachlorophenol decomposition and granular activated carbon regeneration assisted by dielectric barrier discharge plasma

“…Accordingly, an integration of adsorption and discharge plasma decomposition has emerged as one of the most promising options for the treatment of contaminations due to the high degradation efficiency for pollutants and the reusability for adsorbent, and has been reported by some scientists recently [16][17][18][19]. But there is a little literature on DBD plasma to degrade organic pollutants loaded on AC and regenerate AC simultaneously.…”

A new decomposition system for volatile organic compounds using combinations of dielectric barrier discharges with zeolite honeycomb sheets

“…On the other hand, with continuous processing of aromatic hydrocarbons, a good decomposition rate was obtained at a low concentration of 30 ppm, but the rate dropped as the concentration rose. Since aromatic hydrocarbons are readily adsorbed, we conducted experiments to show the possibility of batch processing (discharge decomposition after adsorptive enrichment), and demonstrated the excellent performance of batch processing compared to other methods [3]. In contrast, high-molecular-weight compounds are not readily adsorbed, and hence continuous processing is the proper choice.…”

“…Thus, it appears that if high-concentration toluene were passed through the electrodes, the frequency of contact between the toluene and discharge would increase, thus increasing the decomposition efficiency. We therefore examined batch processing of toluene and other VOCs, a method that can provide adsorptive enrichment [3].…”

“…We investigated various materials and surface treatment methods, and finally decided upon sheet mica. In addition, we employed plate electrodes [3].…”

Abatement of VOCs with Alternate Adsorption and Plasma-Assisted Regeneration: A Review

“…Another cyclic operation of adsorption and DBD treatment was demonstrated by Yamagata et al for the abatement of diluted toluene (10-120 ppm) from air [52,61]. Experiments were carried out with and without gas circulation.…”