Evaluation of NOx removal performance of foam composites with titanium dioxide and active carbon

Abstract

• Activated carbon (AC) and titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) foam composites were fabricated. • The NO X removal performances and micropore structures of the composites were studied. • The TiO 2 and AC replacement ratios and specimen thickness and density were varied. • NO X removal improved with increasing TiO 2 replacement but decreased with density. • The NO X removal was the highest with 15% AC replacement and varied with UV intensity. In this study, the nitrogen oxide (NO X ) removal performances and micropore structures of foam composites with activated carbon (AC) and titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) powder were investigated. AC was used to increase the NO X removal efficiency through TiO 2 powder by increasing the specific surface areas of the foam composites. The foam composites were fabricated with the replacement ratios of TiO 2 powder and AC, as well as the specimen thickness and density, as variables. The NO X removal performance was evaluated according to the test method presented in ISO-22197. The specific surface area of the foam composite tended to increase with increasing AC content but decreased by AC content more than 15 %. The NO X removal efficiency was the highest when the AC replacement ratio was 15 %. The NO X removal efficiency improved as the replacement ratio of TiO 2 powder increased but decreased as the density of the foam composite increased. The NO X removal efficiency was the highest when the thickness of the specimen was 20 mm and was greatly affected by the ultraviolet light intensity.