MERCURY OXIDIZATION IN NON-THERMAL PLASMA BARRIER DISCHARGE SYSTEM

In the past decade, the emission of toxic elements from human activities has become a matter of great public concern. Hg, As, Se and Cd typically volatilize during a combustion process and are not easily caught with conventional air pollution control techniques. In addition, there is no pollution prevention technique available now or likely be available in the foreseeable future that can prevent the emission of these trace elements. These trace elements pose additional scientific challenge as they are present at only ppb levels in large gas streams. Mercury, in particular, has attracted significant attention due to its high volatility, toxicity and potential threat to human health. In the present research work, a non-thermal plasma dielectric barrier discharge technique has been used to oxidize Hg{sup 0}(g) to HgO. The basic premise of this approach is that Hg{sup 0} in vapor form cannot be easily removed in an absorption tower whereas HgO as a particulate is amiable to water scrubbing. The work presented in this report consists of three steps: (1) setting-up of an experimental apparatus to generate mercury vapors at a constant rate and modifying the existing non-thermal plasma reactor system, (2) solving the analytical challenge for measuring mercury vapor concentration at ppb level, and (3) conducting experiments on mercury oxidation under plasma conditions to establish proof of concept