SO2 removal from flue gas by activated semi-cokes: 2. Effects of physical structures and chemical properties on SO2 removal activity Original Research Article

This paper deals with the effects of physical structures and chemical properties of the catalysts, activated semi-cokes, on SO2 removal activity. The catalysts were characterized in terms of physical structures—specific surface area, pore volume and pore size—and chemical properties—acidity and basicity. Results show that the presence of basic groups on the catalyst surface is a precondition for SO2 removal at 90 °C. For catalysts containing copper species, there is no relation between chemical properties and sulfur retention. For catalysts without copper species, sulfur retention shows no correlation with the content of acidic groups, but it nonlinearly increases with increasing the content of basic groups, and there is a good linear relationship between SO2 capture capacity and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area and pore volume. These results indicate that for catalysts without copper species in this work, physical structure dominates SO2 capture capacity while chemical properties have a smaller influence on SO2 removal efficiency.