Synthesis of Mesoporous Cu-Ni/Al2O4 Catalyst for Hydrogen Production via Hydrothermal Reconstruction Route

Mesoporous Cu-Ni/Al2O4 catalyst of high surface area (176 m2g−1) is synthesized through a simple hydrothermal reconstruction process by using low-cost activated alumina as the aluminate source without organic templates. The desired mesoporous structure of the catalyst is formed by the addition of Cu2+ and Ni2+ metal ions in the gel solution of the activated alumina followed by hydrothermal treatment at 70 °C and calcination at temperatures in the range of 600 to 800 °C. To consider the environmental concern, we found the concentration of the Cu2+ and Ni2+ ion in the residual filtrate is less than 0.1 ppm which satisfies the effluent standard in Taiwan (<1.0 ppm). The effects of the pH value, hydrothermal treatment time, and calcination temperature on the structure, morphology and surface area of the synthesized Cu-Ni/Al2O4 composites are investigated as well. In addition, the Cu-Ni/Al2O4 catalyst synthesized at pH 9.0 with a hydrothermal treatment time of 24 h and a calcination temperature of 600 °C is used for hydrogen production via the partial oxidation of methanol. The conversion efficiency is found to be >99% at a reaction temperature of around 315 °C, while the H2 yield is 1.99 mol H2/mol MeOH. The catalyst retains its original structure and surface area following the reaction process, and is thus inferred to have a good stability. Overall, the hydrothermal reconstruction route described herein is facile and easily extendable to the preparation of other mesoporous metal-alumina materials for catalyst applications.

STUDY OF THE INFLUENCE OF TECHNOLOGICAL PARAMETERS ON THE GRANULOMETRIC CHARACTERISTICS OF SUBMICRON ALUMINUM OXIDE IN α-FORM

Experimental studies of the influence of technological parameters of grinding alumina raw materials in a ball mill on the kinetics of the grinding process and the granulometric characteristics of activated alumina in the α-form have been carried out. It is found that the use of spherical grinding bodies leads to the formation of a specific four-modal granulometric composition with maxima: 0.5; 4.0; 50.0 and 400.0 microns, respectively. The disadvantage of using spherical grinding bodies is the uneven distribution of the introduced intensifier additive (PEG), which in turn causes adhesion of fine particles and the appearance of aggregates. This is especially pronounced at n = 100 rpm. When using grinding bodies of cylindrical shape, on the contrary, there is a tendency towards a bimodal nature of the distribution of particles with maxima in the regions of 0.4 and 4 μm, respectively, regardless of the rotation speed of the drum (n). The use of cylpebs does not provoke agglomeration of the fine particle fraction, which is observed in the case of spherical grinding bodies. When analyzing the kinetics of grinding alumina raw materials, two main stages of the process are identified. The first stage corresponds to the active fragmentation of large initial aggregates into constituent crystallites by the cleavage mechanism. The second stage corresponds to a change in the grinding mechanism from crushing to abrasion. It is found that carrying out the grinding process for 10 hours using cylindrical grinding bodies at n = 100 rpm and φ = 0.35 provides a high yield of the submicron fraction of the target product (1 μm) - up to 20 wt. %.

Neural Network and Random Forest-Based Analyses of the Performance of Community Drinking Water Arsenic Treatment Plants

A plethora of technologies has been developed over decades of extensive research on arsenic remediation, although the technical and financial perspective of arsenic removal plants in the field requires critical evaluation. In the present study, focusing on some of the pronounced arsenic-affected areas in West Bengal, India, we assessed the implementation and operation of different arsenic removal technologies using a dataset of 4000 spatio-temporal data collected from an in-depth field survey of 136 arsenic removal plants engaged in the public water supply. Our statistical analysis of this dataset indicates a 120% rise in the average cumulative capacity of the plants during 2014–2021. The majorities of the plants are based on the activated alumina with FeCl3 technology and serve about 49% of the population in the study area. The average cost of water production for the activated alumina with FeCl3 technology was found to be ₹7.56/m3 (USD $1 ≈ INR ₹70), while the lowest was ₹0.39/m3 for granular ferric hydroxide technology. A machine learning-based framework was employed to analyze the impact of water quality and treatment plant parameters on the removal efficiency, capital, and operational cost of the plants. The artificial neural network model exhibited adequate statistical significance, with a high F-value and R2 of 5830.94 and 0.72 for the capital cost model, 136,954, and 0.98 for the operational cost model, respectively. The relative importance of the process variables was identified through random forest models. The models indicated that flow rate, media, and chemicals are the predominant costs, while contaminant loading in influent water and a coagulating agent was important for removal efficiency. The established framework may be instrumental as a decision-making tool for water providers to assess the expected performance and financial involvement for proposed or ongoing arsenic removal plants concerning various design and quality parameters.

Zeolite/Cerium Oxide Coat-on Activated Alumina Ball for Arsenite Removal via Fixed- Bed Continuous Flow Adsorption Column

Arsenite (As(III)) has threatened human life for ages. It is a necessity to remove As(III) from the contaminated water before general use. With the improvement of adsorption, higher As(III) removal can be achieved. This study aimed to develop zeolite/cerium oxide coat-on activated alumina ball adsorbent (CeZ-ball) with the aid of PVA binder and apply it to a fixed-bed continuous flow column for As(III) adsorption. The coating percentage of CeZ-ball was studied. Cerium ions leaching from CeZ-ball were monitored throughout the 2,880-min-column run to confirm the stability of CeZ attached to an activated alumina ball. Surface area, pH point of zero charge, and structural property of CeZ-ball were characterized. An average CeZ coating of 83.3% and rare leaching of cerium proved the coating method. The models proposed by Yoon-Nelson provided the most satisfactory fit with the breakthrough curve (r2 = 0.985, MPSD = 2.547, and q0 = 3.481 mg·g–1) under experimental conditions of the flow rate of 5 mL·min–1, As(III) influent concentration of 1 mg·L–1, and CeZ-ball weight of 40 g. The half-time of breakthrough (τ) was 1,228.739 min. The effects of the key parameters, including initial adsorbent weight, initial flow rate, and initial As(III) concentration, were investigated for the performance of As(III) adsorption. Simulated from the Yoon-Nelson model, the τ increased as well as the adsorbent weight but decreased as the flow rate increased, thus impacting the As(III) concentration. With the optimal condition, the fixed-bed continuous column with CeZ-ball could be used in As(III) removal from contaminated water.

Simultaneous removal of fluoride, manganese and iron by manganese oxide supported activated alumina: characterization and optimization via response surface methodology

Fluoride, iron and manganese simultaneous exceedance of standard can be observed in groundwater in northeastern China. This work aims to apply a highly efficient method combining adsorption and oxidation for the synchronous removal of the inorganic ions. An innovative adsorbent (manganese-supported activated alumina) was synthesized by the impregnation method and showed a significant adsorption capacity better than that of fresh activated alumina. The characterization (scanning electron microscope; Brunauer, Emmett and Teller; X-ray diffraction and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) results verified the successful introduction of MnOOH and MnO2, and the improvement of surface microstructure enhanced the removal ability. The effect of single factors, such as pH value, reaction time or dosage on the removal performance has been verified. The maximum removal efficiencies of fluoride, iron and manganese were optimized via Response surface methodology considering the independent factors in the range of MO@AA dosage (5–9 g/L), pH (4–6) and contact time (4–12 h). Noted that compared with control, MO@AA exhibited 59.4% of improved fluoride performance. At pH of 5.79, contacting time of 12 h and 8.21 g/L of MO@AA, fluoride, iron and manganese removal were found to be 91, 100 and 23%, respectively. Herein, MO@AA was distinguished good applicability for the treatment of fluoride, iron and manganese containing groundwater.

A Solar Assistant Dehumidifier Based on Porous Metal-Organic Framework

As an important factor to measure environmental comfort, humidity control is very important. However, previous dehumidification methods have many defects, such as condensation and adsorbents, which often require a lot of energy. The growing requirements of an indoor environment can stem from the development of living levels and technology. Humidity, as an important factor to measure environmental comfort, affects living and production, and indoor humidity control is an indispensable part of modern architecture. However, there are many defects in the previous dehumidification methods, such as condensation dehumidification, which often requires a lot of energy. Traditional adsorbents (such as zeolite silica and activated alumina) have problems with fragile structures or high regeneration temperatures. In this paper, an indoor dehumidification device based on the porous metal-organic framework {MOF-801, Zr6O4(OH)4(Fumarate)6}, can realize the indoor dehumidification process only by using a small amount of solar energy (1 kilowatt per square meter). The device is expected to remove 0.2113 kg/h of moisture per square meter MOF-801, only needs a few additional energy inputs.