Ultrasonic coal-wash for de-sulfurization

Coal is the one of the world's most abundant fossil fuel resources. It is not a clean fuel, as it contains ash and sulfur. SOx as a pollutant are a real threat to both the ecosystem and to human health. There are numerous de-sulfurization methods to control SO2 emissions. Nowadays, online flue gas de-sulfurization is being used as one such method to remove sulfur from coal during combustion. The biggest disadvantage associated with this method is formation of by-products (FGD gypsum). A way for effective usage of FGD gypsum has not yet been found. This will lead to acute and chronic effects to humans as well as plants. Power ultrasound can be used for the beneficiation of coal by the removal of sulfur from coal prior to coal combustion. The main effects of ultrasound in liquid medium are acoustic cavitation and acoustic streaming. The process of formation, growth and implosion of bubbles is called cavitation. Bulk fluid motion due to sound energy absorption is known as acoustic streaming. In addition, coupling of an acoustic field to water produces OH radicals, H 2O2, O2, ozone and HO2 that are strong oxidizing agents. Oxidation that occurs due to ultrasound is called Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP). It converts sulfur from coal to water-soluble sulphates. Conventional chemical-based soaking and stirring methods are compared here to ultrasonic methods of de-sulfurization. The main advantages of ultrasonic de-sulfurization over conventional methods, the mechanism involved in ultrasonic de-sulfurization and the difference between aqueous-based and solvent-based (2 N HNO3, 3-volume percentage H2O 2) de-sulfurization are investigated experimentally. © 2010 Elsevier B.V.