Field Demonstration and Commercialization of Silent Discharge Plasma Hazardous Air Pollutant Control Technology

摘要

Silent electrical discharge plasma reactors can decompose gas-phase pollutants by free-radical attack or electron-induced fragmentation. The radicals or electrons are produced by the large average volume nonthermal plasmas generated in the reactor. In the past decade, the barrier configuration has attracted attention for destroying toxic chemical agents for military, removing harmful greenhouse gases, and treating other environmentally-hazardous chemical compounds. At the Los Alamos National Laboratory, we have been studying the silent discharge plasma (SDP) for processing gaseous-based hazardous chemicals for approximately five years. The key objective is to convert hazardous or toxic chemicals into non-hazardous compounds or into materials which are more easily managed. The main applications have been for treating off- gases from thermal treatment units, and for abating hazardous air pollutant emissions. In this paper we will summarize the basic principles of SDP processing, discuss illustrative applications of the technology, and present results from small-scale field tests that are relevant to our commercialization effort.