†University of Alberta, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Edmonton, AB T6G 2W2, Canada.
‡Environmental Quality Office, Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, Michigan 48126, United States.
Environ Sci Technol. 2015 Apr 7;49(7):4536-42. doi: 10.1021/es505953c. Epub 2015 Mar 13.
Incomplete regeneration of activated carbon loaded with organic compounds results in heel build-up that reduces the useful life of the adsorbent. In this study, microwave heating was tested as a regeneration method for beaded activated carbon (BAC) loaded with n-dodecane, a high molecular weight volatile organic compound. Energy consumption and desorption efficiency for microwave-heating regeneration were compared with conductive-heating regeneration. The minimum energy needed to completely regenerate the adsorbent (100% desorption efficiency) using microwave regeneration was 6% of that needed with conductive heating regeneration, owing to more rapid heating rates and lower heat loss. Analyses of adsorbent pore size distribution and surface chemistry confirmed that neither heating method altered the physical/chemical properties of the BAC. Additionally, gas chromatography (with flame ionization detector) confirmed that neither regeneration method detectably altered the adsorbate composition during desorption. By demonstrating improvements in energy consumption and desorption efficiency and showing stable adsorbate and adsorbent properties, this paper suggests that microwave heating is an attractive method for activated carbon regeneration particularly when high-affinity VOC adsorbates are present.
未完全再生负载有有机化合物的活性炭会导致炭床增厚，从而缩短吸附剂的有效使用寿命。在这项研究中，微波加热被测试为一种再生方法，用于再生负载有正十二烷（一种高分子量挥发性有机化合物）的珠状活性炭（BAC）。与导电加热再生相比，对微波加热再生的能量消耗和脱附效率进行了测试。使用微波再生完全再生吸附剂（100%脱附效率）所需的最小能量仅为导电加热再生所需能量的 6%，这是由于微波加热具有更快的加热速率和更低的热量损失。对吸附剂孔径分布和表面化学的分析证实，两种加热方法均未改变 BAC 的物理/化学性质。此外，气相色谱（带有火焰离子化检测器）证实，在脱附过程中，两种再生方法均未检测到吸附质组成发生变化。通过证明在能量消耗和脱附效率方面的改进，并显示出稳定的吸附质和吸附剂性能，本文表明，微波加热是一种有吸引力的活性炭再生方法，特别是在存在高亲和力 VOC 吸附剂时。
