Gas Processing Apparatus Plasma Flow Gap Optimization
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional gas decomposition devices face challenges in achieving high efficiency and large flow rates while maintaining a compact size, as they often require large surface areas for catalysts or electrodes, leading to pressure losses and increased device size, and struggle with decomposing hardly decomposable gases due to limitations in oxidizing power and reactant supply.
Innovation Solution
A gas decomposition device utilizing dielectric substrates with discharge electrodes and ground electrodes, generating plasma-induced flows that efficiently decompose gases by optimizing the gap between substrates to leverage active oxygen species like OH and O radicals, combined with photocatalyst layers to enhance decomposition efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a large surface area catalyst or electrode is used to increase decomposition efficiency, then gas decomposition ratio improves, but device size and pressure loss increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the physical and chemical parameters of the gas phase reaction by controlling temperature, pressure, and composition to achieve high decomposition ratios without requiring large catalyst surface areas. The gas phase oxidation reactions proceed efficiently under specific parameter conditions, eliminating the need for large-scale catalyst beds or electrode surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces the mechanical/physical system of large surface area catalysts and electrodes with a chemical system based on gas phase oxidation reactions. By using strong oxidants and controlling reaction parameters, the system achieves decomposition without relying on large mechanical structures, thereby reducing device size and pressure loss.
2Productivity
If a large surface area catalyst or electrode is used to increase decomposition efficiency, then gas decomposition ratio improves, but pressure loss increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention optimizes reaction parameters including temperature, pressure, and gas composition to enable efficient decomposition reactions to proceed in the gas phase without requiring passage through large catalyst beds. This parameter control allows high decomposition ratios while maintaining low pressure loss by avoiding dense catalyst structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention substitutes the mechanical flow through large catalyst surfaces with a chemical reaction process occurring in the gas phase. By using strong oxidants and controlling reaction conditions, decomposition occurs without the need for gas to pass through large surface area catalysts or electrodes, thereby eliminating the associated pressure losses.
3Productivity
If ozone is supplied in high concentration to increase decomposition rate, then easy-to-decompose gases are effectively treated, but oxidizing power is insufficient for hardly decomposable gases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention employs strong oxidants with higher oxidizing power than ozone, such as hydroxyl radicals (OH•) and atomic oxygen (O), to effectively decompose hardly decomposable gases like toluene and acetaldehyde. These strong oxidants provide the necessary oxidizing power that ozone alone cannot achieve, enabling complete decomposition of recalcitrant compounds.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a composite oxidation system combining multiple oxidizing agents (ozone, hydroxyl radicals, atomic oxygen) to achieve both high decomposition rates and sufficient oxidizing power. By integrating different oxidation mechanisms, the system can handle both easy-to-decompose and hardly decomposable gases effectively, overcoming the limitations of using any single oxidant alone.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The device achieves high gas decomposition efficiency with a compact size, capable of rapidly decomposing difficult gases like toluene, while minimizing pressure loss and maintaining a small footprint, outperforming larger commercial systems in terms of decomposition ratio and size.
Implementation Method 1
a first and a second discharge electrode respectively disposed on a pair of facing principal surfaces of the dielectric substrates... an AC power source configured to generate a first plasma-induced flow at a first discharge electrode side and a second plasma-induced flow at a second discharge electrode side by applying an AC voltage between the first discharge electrode and the first ground electrode and between the second discharge electrode and the second ground electrode to ionize the gas
Implementation Method 2
applying an AC voltage between the first discharge electrode and the first ground electrode and between the second discharge electrode and the second ground electrode to ionize the gas
Implementation Method 3
OH radical, O radical having active oxygen have much stronger oxidizing power, and are able to decompose the hardly decomposable gas at high speed
Data Source
AI summary
A gas processing apparatus of an embodiment includes: first and second dielectric substrates facing with each other; first and second discharge electrodes respectively disposed on a pair of facing principal surfaces of the dielectric substrates; first and second ground electrodes respectively disposed on a pair of principle surfaces at opposite sides of the principle surfaces of the dielectric substrates; a gas flow path to supply gas to be processed between the discharge electrodes; an AC power source to generate first and second plasma-induced flows by applying an AC voltage between the discharge electrodes and the ground electrodes; and a region disposed between the dielectric substrates at downstream of the plasma-induced flows from the discharge electrodes, and a gap between the dielectric substrates being 1.3 times or less of a sum of thicknesses of the plasma-induced flows.