Degradation of toluene by tube-tube coaxial dielectric barrier discharge: power characteristics and power factor optimization

Characteristics of Double-Layer, Large-Flow Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma Source for Toluene Decomposition

The direct decomposition of toluene-containing humidified air at large flow rates was studied in two types of reactors with dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) features in ambient conditions. A scalable large-flow DBD reactor (single-layer reactor) was designed to verify the feasibility of large-flow plasma generation and evaluate its decomposition characteristics with toluene-containing humidified air, which have not been investigated. In addition, another large-flow DBD reactor with a multilayer structure (two-layer reactor) was developed as an upscale version of the single-layer reactor, and the scalability and superiority of the features of the multilayer structure were validated by comparing the decomposition characteristics of the two reactors. Consequently, the large-flow DBD reactor showed similar decomposition characteristics to those of the small-flow DBD reactor regarding applied voltage, flow velocity, flow rate, and discharge length, thus justifying the feasibility of large-flow plasma generation. Additionally, the two-layer reactor is more effective than the single-layer reactor, suggesting multilayer configuration is a viable scheme for further upscaled DBD systems. A high decomposition rate of 59.5% was achieved at the considerably large flow rate of 110 L/min. The results provide fundamental data and present guidelines for the implementation of the DBD plasma-based system as a solution for volatile organic compound abatement.

The Bibliometric Analysis and Review of the Application of Plasma in the Field of VOCs

The application of plasma in the field of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can be traced back to the 1990s and has gradually developed into an important research field. In this regard, this article primarily sorts and analyzes the literature on the “application of plasma in the field of VOCs” in the Web of Science core collection database from 1992 to 2021 and, subsequently, obtains important data and trends, including the annual number of articles published, country, institution analysis, and journal, as well as discipline analysis, etc. The results show that China is not only in a leading position in the field of research, but also has six top-ten research institutions. This field has more research results in engineering, chemistry, physics, and environmental disciplines. In addition, this article summarizes dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) and titanium-containing catalysts, which represent the discharge characteristics and type of catalyst highlighted through the hot keywords. This review will provide certain guidance for future, related research.