A STUDY OF H2SO4 FORMATION IN THE PROCESS OF SIMULTANEOUS SORPTION OF SO2, O2 AND H2O ONTO A SINGLE CARBON PARTICLE

A mathematical model to describe simultaneous sorption of SO 2 , O 2 and H 2 O in an activated carbon particle is presented in this paper. The competition for active sites of these species is taken into account by a modified Langmuir-type isotherm, which incorporates the competition of the immobile reaction product phase, H 2 SO 4 . Simulations of the model are presented in terms of transient micropore filling of reactant species and product H 2 SO 4 . The simulation results show that the multicomponent interactions play an important role in the sorption process. Fast diffusing species like O 2 and H 2 O instantaneously adsorb in the micropore volume of the sorbent. In the course of simultaneous adsorption and reaction of all species in the micropore, a rollup phenomenon on the transient behavior of fast diffusing species could occur, i.e. the micropore loading of these gaseous species can overshoot the final equilibrium level. The simulation results of H 2 SO 4 micropore loading are found to agree reasonably well with the experimental data.