Insight into the effective electrocatalytic sulfide removal from aqueous solutions using surface oxidized stainless-steel anode and its desulfurization mechanism.

The electrochemical oxidation of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has shown its potential for the real application of H2S emission control in wastewater treatment. In this study, a surface corrosion treatment of stainless steel (SS) was optimized by regulate Ni content in the oxide film on the SS AISI 304 surface for sulfide removal. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and linear sweeping voltammetry results indicated a higher Ni content in the oxide film of surface-oxidized stainless steel (SOSS) attributed to a higher sulfide removal potential. Sulfide removal experiment results showed that SS-150 (with 150 s anodic pretreatment) anodes achieved the highest Ni content of 69% with the best sulfide removal efficiency, i.e., 97% within 48 h, which increased by 20% compared to the untreated SS. This study also demonstrated a strategy for in situ removal of deposited sulfur on the anodes by cathodic treatment at -0.38 V vs. RHE to alleviate the common issue of sulfur passivation. Density functional theory (DFT) calculation revealed that NiOOH was the major active species in SS-150 oxide film for a faster sulfide removal rate. The study developed a SS surface modification process for Ni content regulation that contributed to better sulfide removal efficiency.

Nickel-Catalyzed mesoporous biochar for enhanced adsorptive oxidation of aqueous Sulfide: An investigation of influencing factors and mechanisms.

Biochar (BC) is a low-cost and electroactive adsorbent for removing sulfide in aqueous media, which toxifies aquatic organisms and corrodes water treatment facilities. However, it lacks a pore structure for sulfide ion (S2-) mass transfer to active sites. Herein, it is shown that nickel-modified biochar (BC-Ni) adsorbed S2- 2.72-fold faster than BC alone and attained a 1244 ± 252 mg-sulfide/g maximum adsorption capacity due to markedly increased mesopores, while BC attained 583 ± 250 mg-sulfide/g. Factors influencing S2-sorption and theoretical sorption kinetics and isotherms models were evaluated. Structural and surface compositions of BC and BC-Ni were examined using state-of-the-art characterizations. The results suggest that S2- was adsorbed via pore diffusion, pore filling, and cation bridging and oxidized to elemental sulfur and sulfate with quinone and hydrogen peroxide generated from dehydrogenation of hydroquinone on the BC-Ni by metallic nickel in the carbon matrix. This study would spur biomass valorization and desulfurization.

Prediction Method for Torrefied Rice Husk Based on Gray-scale Analysis.

Torrefaction pretreatment has recently gained attention for the potential improvement in biomass properties. Otherwise, visible image-processing technology for analyzing properties of torrefied biomass was evaluated for possible use in the future online process control. In this study, torrefied rice husk from different torrefaction temperatures (180-330 °C) was obtained. After torrefaction, the biochar was characterized to determine the effects of torrefaction temperature on the properties, including the proximate analysis, solid yield (SY), and higher heating values. In addition, the color values, including red-green-blue (RGB) values, and grayscale (GS) of torrefied rice husk, were measured. The results show that the fixed carbon and ash increased from 17.39 to 35.13 and 7.06 to 38.41%, respectively, while volatile matters decreased from 71.47% to a minimum of 22.89% with the increase of torrefaction temperature from 105 to 330 °C. The SY remained higher than 46% even at the most severe torrefaction condition because of the high ash content and high remaining lignin. Moreover, the higher heating values of torrefied rice husk were increased from 14.80 to 17.82 MJ/kg when increased the pretreatment temperature. RGB values were decreased with the increase of torrefaction temperature. The GS analysis results show that the color of torrefied rice husk changed from yellow to brown at light torrefaction and black at severe torrefaction. GS of torrefied rice husk shows a good correlation (R = 0.9998) with torrefaction temperature. Prediction equations with higher fitting degree between GS and proximate analysis (R 2 > 0.9900), high heat values (R 2 = 0.9999), and SY (R 2 = 0.9979), which are developed to reflect the changing characteristics of torrefied rice husk. The results show that the prediction method based on GS is a promising technology to measure the properties of torrefied rice husk.