Adsorption of Mercury Chloride onto Activated Carbon on a New Pilot Scale Plant

Abstract

A commercially available activated carbon (Norit Darco FGD) has been used to perform experimental runs aimed to study the divalent mercury adsorption phenomena. The authors have already investigated about this topic, carrying out several studies on mercury adsorption, both in metallic and divalent form, by using activated carbon, on a laboratory scale apparatus. However this time their studies are focused on adsorption of divalent mercury chloride vapors onto a solid carbon phase dispersed in a continuous phase; so a new pilot scale plant necessitates. The new layout has permitted to investigate phenomena involved varying the following parameters: first of all the temperature reactor (from 120 °C to 135 °C), then the initial mercury concentration (c_Hgⁱⁿ, 1000 to 2000 µg/m³), finally the initial total gas flowrate (27.8 to 62.3 m³/h). The carbon flowrate has been kept constant to 6 g/h value. Results obtained are very encouraging, as the activated carbon efficiency reaches up to 80% value.