Flue gas treatment using pulsed corona discharge generated by magnetic pulse compression modulator

A pilot-scale pulsed corona discharge process was applied to the treatment of industrial flue gas from an iron-ore sintering plant. The electrode structure of the corona reactor is similar to that of a conventional electrostatic precipitator. A two-stage magnetic pulse compression modulator whose average power is 40 kW was used to produce repetitive high voltage pulse. The dependencies of variables such as channel width, peak voltage level and discharging wire thickness on power delivery were examined. In this system, pulsed power with peak voltage of 180 kV and peak current of 3 kA was obtained. The energy conversion efficiency from the magnetic pulse compression modulator to the corona reactor was maximally 76%. Dust content in the flue gas up to 4.6 g/Nm3 did not influence the power delivery. The maximum energy intensity obtained in this system was 0.6 J/pulse/m. The removal efficiencies of SO2 and NOx were measured at a variety of conditions. In the presence of chemical additives such as ammonia and propene, about 95% of SO2 and 60% of NOx were removed at an energy density of only 3.0 Wh/Nm3.