Capture of gaseous elemental mercury from flue gas using a magnetic and sulfur poisoning resistant sorbent Mn/γ-Fe2O3 at lower temperatures.

A series of Mn/γ-Fe(2)O(3) were synthesized to capture elemental mercury from the flue gas. Mn(4+) cations and cation vacancies on the surface played important roles on elemental mercury capture by Mn/γ-Fe(2)O(3). Furthermore, the reaction route of elemental mercury oxidization was dependent on the ratio of Mn(4+) cations to cation vacancies. As a result, the capacities of 15%-Mn/γ-Fe(2)O(3)-250 for elemental mercury capture were generally higher than those of 30%-Mn/γ-Fe(2)O(3)-400. SO(2) mainly reacted with ≡Fe(III)-OH and only a small amount of ≡Mn(4+) reacted with SO(2), so the presence of a high concentration of SO(2) resulted in an insignificant effect on elemental mercury capture by 15%-Mn/γ-Fe(2)O(3)-250 at lower temperatures. The capacities of 15%-Mn/γ-Fe(2)O(3)-250 for elemental mercury capture in the presence of 2.8 g N m(-3) of SO(2) were more than 2.2 mg g(-1) at <200°C. Meanwhile, 15%-Mn/γ-Fe(2)O(3)-250 can be separated from the fly ash using magnetic separation, leaving the fly ash essentially free of sorbent and adsorbed HgO. Therefore, 15% Mn/γ-Fe(2)O(3)-250 may be a promising sorbent for elemental mercury capture.