Estudo da adsorção de compostos sulfurados em carbono ativado

Abstract

In order to meet increasingly stringent environmental requirements, special attention has been given to the use of adsorption for the removal of sulfur compounds from fuels, either combined to hydrotreatment (HDT) or replacing it, since adsorption can be carried out at mild temperatures and pressures with relatively low-cost materials, not requiring high consumption of hydrogen. Bearing this in mind, this study aims to evaluate carbonaceous adsorbents with respect to their capacity and selectivity for sulfur compounds, especially from the class of thiophenes, from synthetic organic mixtures thiophene / n-hexane and thiophene / toluene, using the experimental technique of headspace chromatography. Such technique consists in analysing the composition of the vapor phase of a mixture of hydrocarbons in equilibrium with the condensed phase, which remains in contact with the adsorbent in a sealed and thermostated vial. The results show that the adsorbents tested materials presented different sulfur / aromatic selectivity.