SYNTHESIS OF SULFUR-BASED WATER TREATMENT AGENT FROM SULFUR DIOXIDE WASTE STREAMS

Abstract

Absorption of sulfur dioxide from a simulated flue gas was investigated for the production of polymeric ferric sulfate (PFS), a highly effective coagulant useful in treatment of drinking water and wastewater. The reaction for PFS synthesis took place near atmospheric pressure and at temperatures of 30-80 C. SO{sub 2} removal efficiencies greater than 90% were achieved, with ferrous iron concentrations in the product less than 0.1%. A factorial analysis of the effect of temperature, oxidant dosage, SO{sub 2} concentration, and gas flow rate on SO{sub 2} removal efficiency was carried out, and statistical analyses are conducted. The solid PFS was also characterized with different methods. Characterization results have shown that PFS possesses both crystalline and non-crystalline structure. The kinetics of reactions among FeSO{sub 4} {center_dot} 7H{sub 2}O, NaHSO{sub 3} and NaClO{sub 3} was investigated. Characterizations of dry PFS synthesized from SO{sub 2} show the PFS possesses amorphous structure, which is desired for it to be a good coagulant in water and wastewater treatment. A series of lab-scale experiments were conducted to evaluate the performance of PFS synthesized from waste sulfur dioxide, ferrous sulfate and sodium chlorate. The performance assessments were based on the comparison of PFS and other conventional and new coagulants for the removal of turbidity and arsenic under different laboratory coagulant conditions. Pilot plant studies were conducted at Des Moines Water Works in Iowa and at the City of Savannah Industrial and Domestic (I&D) Water Treatment Plant in Port Wentworth, Georgia. PFS performances were compared with those of conventional coagulants. The tests in both water treatment plants have shown that PFS is, in general, comparable or better than other coagulants in removal of turbidity and organic substances. The corrosion behavior of polymeric ferric sulfate (PFS) prepared from SO{sub 2} and ferric chloride (FC) were compared. Results showed that both temperature and concentration of the coagulants substantially impact corrosion rates. The corrosion rates increased with the increase of temperature and concentration. The results from a scanning electron microscope (SEM) showed that chloride caused more serious pitting than sulfate anion on both aluminum and steel specimens. Although SEM confirmed the existence of pitting corrosion, the results of weight loss indicated that the uniform corrosion predominate the corrosion mechanism, and pitting corrosion played a less important role. The test proved that PFS was less corrosive than FC, which may lead to the large-scale application of PFS in waste treatment. The kinetics of the new desulfurization process has been studied. The study results provide the theoretical guidance for improving sulfur removal efficiency and controlling the quality of PFS.