Bio-oxidation as a viable method for SOx emission control

Outgas emission control has become an overall pervasive technological problem that is further complicated with legislative imperatives and demands of the marketplace. It is already clear that the industry requires efficient, affordable solutions, that are also technology- and configuration-specific. The present work reports the results of a series of experiments aimed al developing a biooxidation technology to improve SOx removal from outgases. This technology uses bacterial oxidation of SO2 by the Thiobacillus or the Leptospirillum family. Gas phase SO2/SO3 conversions were facilitated by bacterial oxidation. A typical low concentration outgas containing 3% SO2, 12 ppm CO and 380 ppm CO2 was tested for bio-conversion in a packed-bed bio-reactor. The goal of the experiment was to oxidize SO2 into SO3 in the gas phase, which can then be out by water, In this investigation a processing rate of 120 mL/h at 32 degrees C was used. The experimental results have demonstrated that gas phase bio-oxidation of SO2 is a feasible processing method, and development of a prototype may be built in a realistic lime frame (one to two years).