Acelera

Flue Gas Remediation

Air Pollution: A Worldwide Problem
Air pollution is the human introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological matter into the atmosphere that causes harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or damages the environment. Air pollution has been shown to cause cancer and respiratory disease and is a major contributor to global warming.

Coal-fired power plants are a major contributor to air pollution, generating vast amount of particulate matter into the atmosphere. (For details, see this article by the Union of Concerned Scientists: http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/coalvswind/c02c.html). With rising oil prices, coal fired power plants are being built at an unprecedented rate worldwide. It is estimated that the increase in global-warming gases from China's coal use will probably exceed that for all industrialized countries combined over the next 25 years, surpassing by five times the reduction in such emissions that the Kyoto Protocol seeks. It is clear that innovative technological solutions are needed to remediate flue gases produced by the burning of coal.

Conventional Treatment of Flue Gas Pollution
Conventional methods of flue gas treatment are wet methods. They result in large volumes of wastewater which subsequently must be treated. E-beam treatment was developed as a cost-effective way to eliminate this problem.

How Does E-beam Treatment Work?
E-beam treatment of flue gas oxidizes the SO2 and NOx to sulfuric acid and nitric acid respectively. Once formed, these acids are neutralized by reaction with ammonia which is injected into the flue gas stream. The resulting ammonium sulfate and ammonium nitrate salts are formed as fine powdery material that can be removed by electrostatic precipitation or by filtration. These salts have been shown to be effective components of commercial fertilizers.

What are the Benefits of E-Beam Flue Gas Treatment?
Laboratory studies have shown that E-beam treatment of flue gases is a simple process to implement and operate, as well as an efficient process for removing SO2 (95% removal) and NOx (80% removal). Furthermore, it is 20-25% more economical compared to conventional treatment methods and does not require vast amounts of water to implement.

Acelera’s Accelerator for Flue Gas Treatment
Acelera and our partners have developed a very compact and economical flue gas treatment system based on its novel rotating wave accelerator. The use of this state-of-the-art accelerator reduces space and power requirements, thus making it a very viable and cost-effective solution for flue gas treatment. Systems can be fabricated to target the specific needs and requirements of our customers.