Title: Decomposition of trace chlorobenzene over V₂O₅-WO₃/TiO₂-based catalysts in simulated flue gas

Authors: Shengyong Lu; Rixiao Zhao; Chun Wai Lee; Brian K. Gullett; William R. Stevens; Yong-Xin Zhao

Addresses: State Key Laboratory of Clean Energy Utilization, Institute for Thermal Power Engineering of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China ' State Key Laboratory of Clean Energy Utilization, Institute for Thermal Power Engineering of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China ' US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, National Risk Management Research Laboratory, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711, USA ' US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, National Risk Management Research Laboratory, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711, USA ' US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, National Risk Management Research Laboratory, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711, USA; College of Health Sciences, Kentucky Christian University, 100 Academic Parkway, Grayson, KY 41143, USA ' ARCADIS US., Inc., 4915 Prospectus Drive, suite F, Durham, NC 27513, USA; POET Research, Inc., 4615 N Lewis Avenue, Sioux Falls, SD 57104, USA

Abstract: Commercial and laboratory-prepared V₂O₅-WO₃/TiO₂-based catalysts with different compositions were tested for catalytic decomposition of chlorobenzene (ClBz) in simulated waste combustion flue gas. Resonance enhanced multiphoton ionisation-time of flight mass spectrometry (REMPI-TOFMS) was employed to measure real-time trace concentrations of ClBz contained in the flue gas before and after use of the catalyst. The results showed that the ClBz decomposition efficiency was significantly enhanced when nano-TiO₂ instead of conventional TiO₂ was used as the catalyst support. No promotion effects were found in the ClBz decomposition process when the catalysts were wet-impregnated with CuO and CeO₂. A comparison between ClBz and benzene decomposition on the V₂O₅-WO₃/TiO₂-based catalyst showed that different active sites were likely involved in the decomposition mechanism, and the V=O and V-O-Ti groups may only work to catalyse the degradation of the phenyl group and the benzene ring rather than the C-Cl bond.

Keywords: environmental pollution; chlorobenzene; V₂O₅-WO₃/TiO₂; catalyst; REMPI-TOFMS; decomposition; flue gas.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEP.2017.087774

International Journal of Environment and Pollution, 2017 Vol.61 No.3/4, pp.314 - 331

Received: 08 Dec 2016
Accepted: 17 Jul 2017
Published online: 01 Nov 2017 *

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