Photocatalytic oxidation for indoor air purification: a literature review

The use of structured catalysts in the chemical industry has been considered for years. Conventional fixed-bed reactors have some obvious disadvantages such as maldistributions of various kinds (including a nonuniform access of reactants to the catalytic surface), high pressure drop in the bed, etc. Structured catalysts are promising as far as elimination of these setbacks is concerned. Two basic kinds of structured catalysts can be distinguished: Structural packings covered with catalytically active material, similar in design to those used in distillation and absorption columns and/or static mixers. Good examples of catalysts of this kind are those offered by Sulzer, clearly developed by Sulzer column packings and static mixers. As in packed beds, there is an intensive radial convective mass transport over the entire cross-section of these packings. Structural packing catalysts and the reactors containing them are, however, not within the scope of this review. Monolithic catalysts are continuou...

Monoliths in Heterogeneous Catalysis

Catalysis and combustion have long been linked. In fact, the science of catalysis stems from Davy's discovery [1] that platinum wires could promote the flameless combustion of flammable fuel-air mixtures. Today, catalysis is a mainstay of our modern chemical industry. Oxidation catalysts are used not only for the complete oxidation of fuels to carbon dioxide and water, as in radiant catalytic tent heaters and fume abatement devices, but also for the selective partial oxidation of hydrocarbons or other “fuels” to produce basic chemicals such as ethylene oxide (from ethylene), terephthalic acid (from p-xylene), and nitric acid (from ammonia). However, despite the long-known capability of catalysts to oxidize hydrocarbons without significant production of carbon monoxide, soot, or thermal NOx, there seemed little possibility that catalytic oxidation reactors could ever displace conventional flame combustors as primary fuel combustors. This is because the volumetric heat release rates of conventional...

J. Skřivánek

Papers

Heat and mass transfer in honeycomb catalysts—II

Heat and mass transfer in monolithic honeycomb catalysts—I.