ADSORPTION OF MERCURIC-CHLORIDE FROM SIMULATED INCINERATOR EXHAUST-GAS BY MEANS OF SORBALIT(TM) PARTICLES

In this work the attention was focused on the use of Sorbalit(TM), a m ixture of impregnated activated carbon and Ca(OH)(2), for adsorption o f mercuric chloride from flue gas of municipal solid waste incinerator s. The study was performed in an apparatus at laboratory scale in whic h simulated flue gas at a given temperature and HgCl2 concentration fl owed through a fixed bed of adsorbent material. The experimental resul ts showed that the adsorbate loading at saturation depends on temperat ure in an unusual fashion: the saturation adsorbate loading decreases with T for 70 degrees less than or equal to T less than or equal to 15 0 degrees C, but then increases for 150 degrees less than or equal to T less than or equal to 250 degrees C. This result was interpreted by assuming that for T less than or equal to 150 degrees C a process of p hysical adsorption takes place, while for T greater than or equal to 1 50 degrees C the results fall in a ''transition zone'' between physica l adsorption and chemical adsorption. The Langmuir parameters were eva luated for the ''low'' temperature results, and the differential equat ions modeling the adsorption phenomenon were integrated, leading to th e evaluation of a kinetic parameter describing the breakthrough curves experimentally determined.