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High-conversion plasma dissociation of hydrogen sulfide
Dissertation   Open access

High-conversion plasma dissociation of hydrogen sulfide

Kirill A. Gutsol
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Drexel University
Jun 2014
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/etd-7072
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Abstract

Catalysis Hydrogen sulfide Mechanical Engineering
Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S}) treatment is a necessity for the oil refining and gas industries. H₂S, a byproduct of hydro-desulfurization and comprises a significant portion of the natural gas deposits, is currently treated via the Claus process. A gross reaction of the Claus process is partial oxidation of H₂S to sulfur and water. This process, even though well established, has the major drawback of oxidizing valuable hydrogen (H2), which could be used for hydro-desulfurization and, of course, for many other applications including "green" energy generation. H₂S can be a good source for H2 production since its dissociation enthalpy to hydrogen and solid sulfur is only 0.2 eV/molec (compared to dissociation enthalpy of liquid water, which is 2.96 eV/molec). Unfortunately, an economically feasible dissociation process has not yet been implemented in a large scale. Plasma provides a promising solution for H₂S destruction with accompanying H2 production. Organization of such process with degree of conversion is the objective of this study. In the scope of this thesis, H2 production from H₂S is achieved via plasma assisted dissociation of hydrogen sulfide into hydrogen and sulfur. The study is performed to evaluate both thermal and non-thermal methods of dissociation of H₂S with respect to H2 production maximization. The study includes plasma dissociation in non-thermal discharges with high E/n such as AC corona, dielectric barrier, and streamer as well as transitional ("warm") discharges such as contracted glow discharge and gliding arc. Through the extensive modeling work, the dissociation mechanisms are identified for both thermal and non-thermal plasmas, and method an apparatus are developed to facilitate high conversion of H₂S to H2. The results are evaluated and compared with earlier studies. Comparison shows that conversion can be improved up to two times for the thermal dissociation method and possibly higher with further optimizations. The non-thermal plasmas show catalytic effect on hydrogen sulfide dissociation, which can be used for development of the industrial systems with 100% conversion.

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