Production of nanoporous sorbents by partial steam-air conversion of charcoal

Abstract

An effective sorbent is activated carbon having a developed nanoporous structure with an average pore diameter about 2-4 nm. Perspective method of activated carbon production is the partial steam conversion of the coal bed in boiler furnaces of power plants. The additional thermal energy is produced by burning the syngas. The aim of this work is to study the co-production of activated carbon and syngas by partial steam-air conversion of charcoal. Due to the presence of oxygen in the flow, intensification of conversion occurs. In the laboratory bed reactor, the mass loss curves and the syngas composition were obtained at temperatures of 800°C and 900°C. Two zones with different reaction mechanisms were identified on the height of the bed. The reactions between carbon and steam shift toward hydrogen formation in the oxygen zone. The dependence of the porous structure of the activated carbon on the conversion degree of the raw material is obtained. The maximum of micropores is formed at a conversion degree of 0.5. The material and energy balance of the partial conversion in the laboratory reactor was estimated. © 2018 Institute of Physics Publishing. All rights reserved.