Innovative Technology to Remove Phenols from Wash Waters from Combustible Gases Produced by Wood Gasification by Immobilized Photo-assisted Fenton Processes

• Research unit: INNOSUISSE
• Project number: 7078.2;8 EPRP-IW

Short description (English)

Innovative Technology to Remove Phenols from Wash Waters from Combustible Gases Produced by Wood Gasification by Immobilized Photo-assisted Fenton Processes

Abstract (English)

Gasification process allows to transform wood (and some other biomass) into a calorific gas that can be used in engines to produce heat and electricity in a decentralized mode. However, a main issue for the commercialization of this technology, is the degradation of the high phenol concentration found in the wash waters coming from the gas treatment. This project aims at a drastic reduction of the phenol in the wash waters by the use of Advanced Oxidation Technologies. The approach proposed applies either homogenous or heterogeneous Fenton type catalytic processes in the dark or under light. Only by the suitable design and testing of immobilized Fe-fabrics or Fe-membranes it would be in principle possible to arrive at a treatment of the effluents wash waters at pH = 6.5. The EPFL partner has developed immobilized Fenton catalyst to oxidize other pollutants in a photoreactor and they will be used as the starting point for runs involving phenol abatement on by heterogeneous catalysis. Statistical mathematical modeling of the reactor performance aiming at the reduction of the treatment cost will be carried out considering the time, electrical energy and the amount of oxidant to attain the lowest process price in the reactor as this procedure is available in the EPFL laboratory.