REACTIVE ADSORPTION OF ARSINE ON SULFUR -CONTAINING CARBONS: ROLE OF SURFACE CHEMISTRY IN THE OXIDATION PROCESS AT AMBIENT CONDITIONS

摘要

Arsine is widely involved in the field of semiconductor synthesis as a doping material. Because of its high toxicity, any excess of this gas in the preparation process should be removed. Moreover, arsine appears as a trace contaminant of the syngas used in methanol synthesis and its presence is associated with catalyst poisoning. Considering these two aspects, efficient technologies to separate arsine from air or syngas are needed. Toward this purpose, several adsorbents such as alumina and activated carbon have been tested . Whereas some studies report the use of virgin adsorbents, the modification of these materials with metal oxides, such as copper oxide, is also presented as a promising method to remove arsine . The active sites for arsine binding are provided by both the oxide and the carbon support . It was shown that water can bind to these active sites faster than arsine and thus decreases the removal efficiency . Nevertheless, the nature and role of these active centers were not explored. The objective of this study is to investigate the role of oxygen and sulfur-containing groups on the surface of microporous carbon in the removal of arsine.