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Manganese and Ceria Sorbents for High Temperature Sulfur Removal from Biomass-Derived Syngas -- The Impact of Steam on Capacity and Sorption Mode

Journal Article · · Fuel
Syngas derived from biomass and coal gasification for fuel synthesis or electricity generation contains sulfur species that are detrimental to downstream catalysts or turbine operation. Sulfur removal in high temperature, high steam conditions has been known to be challenging, but experimental reports on methods to tackle the problem are not often reported. We have developed sorbents that can remove hydrogen sulfide from syngas at high temperature (700 C), both in dry and high steam conditions. The syngas composition chosen for our experiments is derived from statistical analysis of the gasification products of wood under a large variety of conditions. The two sorbents, Cu-ceria and manganese-based, were tested in a variety of conditions. In syngas containing steam, the capacity of the sorbents is much lower, and the impact of the sorbent in lowering H{sub 2}S levels is only evident in low space velocities. Spectroscopic characterization and thermodynamic consideration of the experimental results suggest that in syngas containing 45% steam, the removal of H{sub 2}S is primarily via surface chemisorptions. For the Cu-ceria sorbent, analysis of the amount of H{sub 2}S retained by the sorbent in dry syngas suggests both copper and ceria play a role in H{sub 2}S removal. For the manganese-based sorbent, in dry conditions, there is a solid state transformation of the sorbent, primarily into the sulfide form.
Research Organization:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Bioenergy Technologies Office (EE-3B)
DOE Contract Number:
AC36-08GO28308
OSTI ID:
1046876
Report Number(s):
NREL/JA-5100-53022
Journal Information:
Fuel, Journal Name: Fuel Journal Issue: July 2012 Vol. 97; ISSN FUELAC; ISSN 0016-2361
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English