New catalytic system for oxidation of isopropyl alcohol with thin film catalysts

Synergistic energy-efficient capture of VOCs and metal-free catalytic conversion using magneto-inductive Guefoams: Proof-of-concept in n-hexane-enriched nitrogen streams

Addressing contemporary environmental and health concerns requires reducing pollutant emissions and converting them into less harmful or valuable compounds within the framework of the circular economy. Guefoam materials offer a promising solution by enabling the capture and pre-concentration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), while facilitating the structuring of active phases for heterogeneous catalytic conversions. This study demonstrates the benefits of merging two newly designed electromagnetic induction-assisted ceramic matrix Guefoams into a portable integrated unit, synergizing the pre-concentration and chemical transformation of n-hexane, a VOC with special challenges. One Guefoam serves as an adsorbent, whereas the other plays a catalytic role. These Guefoams host guest phases, which consist of composite materials combining a steel core with magneto-inductive properties encased in a highly porous carbonaceous layer. This carbonaceous material undertakes a dual mission: adsorbing n-hexane from a nitrogen stream within the adsorptive Guefoam and, upon phosphorus doping in the catalytic Guefoam, orchestrating the metal-free selective dehydroaromatization of n-hexane into benzene. The design and integration of these novel Guefoam materials into a unified functional entity prove highly effective in pre-concentrating (enrichment factors up to 275) and catalyzing n-hexane with up to 84 % conversion and 94 % benzene selectivity while remaining energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable.

Combining bi-functional Pt/USY and electromagnetic induction for rapid in-situ adsorption-combustion cycling of gaseous organic pollutant

By exploiting the superior adsorption capacity of ultra-stable Y-type zeolite (USY) and accurate input of energy by electromagnetic induction field (EMIF) technique, we successfully designed a highly energy-efficient system to eliminate gaseous toluene a common air pollutant. Pristine USY as adsorbent enriches gaseous toluene by a factor of fifteen, via room-temperature adsorption and then EMIF-driven thermal desorption. This operation model involving intermittent heating and mass transfer saves a lot of energy. Especially during temperature rising, 98.9% electric energy can be saved by the EMIF heating in comparison with conventional furnace approaches. In the bi-functional "adsorption-catalytic oxidation" 1Pt/USY, the concentrated toluene undergoes direct oxidation into CO₂ rather than desorption when the EMIF heating starts, so one-step enrichment and mineralization are realized. In addition, the developed bi-functional system operates between adsorption and catalytic decomposition flexibly, which makes it ideal for cleaning VOCs emitted from intermittent sources.

Surface chemistry of 2-propanol and O2 mixtures on SnO2(110) studied with ambient-pressure x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Tin dioxide (SnO₂) has various applications due to its unique surface and electronic properties. These properties are strongly influenced by Sn oxidation states and associated defect chemistries. Recently, the oxidation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into less harmful molecules has been demonstrated using SnO₂ catalysts. A common VOC, 2-propanol (isopropyl alcohol, IPA), has been used as a model compound to better understand SnO₂ reaction kinetics. We have used ambient-pressure x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (AP-XPS) to characterize the surface chemistry of IPA and O₂ mixtures on stoichiometric, unreconstructed SnO₂(110)-(1 × 1) surfaces. AP-XPS experiments were performed for IPA pressures ≤3 mbar, various IPA/O₂ ratios, and several reaction temperatures. These measurements allowed us to determine the chemical states of adsorbed species on SnO₂(110)-(1 × 1) under numerous experimental conditions. We found that both the IPA/O₂ ratio and sample temperature strongly influence reaction chemistries. AP-XPS valence-band spectra indicate that the surface was partially reduced from Sn⁴⁺ to Sn²⁺ during reactions with IPA. In situ mass spectrometry and gas-phase AP-XPS results indicate that the main reaction product was acetone under these conditions. For O₂ and IPA mixtures, the reaction kinetics substantially increased and the surface remained solely Sn⁴⁺. We believe that O₂ replenished surface oxygen vacancies and that SnO₂ bridging and in-plane oxygen are likely the active oxygen species. Moreover, addition of O₂ to the reaction results in a reduction in formation of acetone and an increase in formation of CO₂ and H₂O. Based on these studies, we have developed a reaction model that describes the catalytic oxidation of IPA on stoichiometric SnO₂(110)-(1 × 1) surfaces.

Performance and methane fermentation characteristics of a pilot scale anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) for treating pharmaceutical wastewater containing m-cresol (MC) and iso-propyl alcohol (IPA)

In this study, a pilot scale anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) was operated for 80 days to treat pharmaceutical wastewater containing m-cresol (MC) and iso-propyl alcohol (IPA). The aim of the study is to investigate the performance and methane fermentation characteristics of AnMBR at different hydraulic retention time (HRT) (48, 36, 24, 18 and 12 h). The average total removal efficiencies of MC and IPA were 95%, 96% during the 80 days, which demonstrated that the AnMBR system performed well in the MC and IPA removal. The major volatile fatty acid (VFA) was found to be acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, besides, the VFA accumulated apparently when HRT decreased to 12 h. The decrease of HRT led to an increase of relative abundance of methanosarcina from 13 to 33% and a decrease in biogas yield from 0.19 to 0.05 L/gCOD_removal. The biogas production was found to increase dramatically at HRT of 36 h. The trend of methane content kept stable at this stage with the average value of 78.5% which higher than other HRTs. The investigation of methanogen community showed that methanosarcinaceae was always dominant acetoclastic methanogens and methanomicrobiales was the dominant hydrogen utilizers throughout the operational period. When the HRT dropped to 12 h, the growth of the methanosarcinaceae and methanomicrobiales was observed, the amount of the methanosarcinaceae and methanomicrobiales sharply increased. After the overall research, HRT of 36 h was chosen as the most suitable operating condition due to the comprehensively preferable performance and more economical.