Advanced Thermal and Environmental Systems Research Laboratory (ATESR Lab)
>> Research

Mercury Control Technology | Particle Agglomeration Sensor | Droplet Vaporization Under Asymmetric Condition | Methane Gas Powered Fuel Cell | Power MEMS

Mercury Control Technology

ATESR is currently active in researching and developing Mercury control technologies. Mercury control technologies that reduce emissions of toxic Mercury from coal combustion are being investigated at the laboratory. Specifically, gas-particle suspensions as a mechanism for catalyzing oxidative reactions or adsorption of the part-per-million to part-per-billion concentrations of Mercury whose emission is now regulated is being studied. Gas-particle suspensions offer less flow disruption and are more flexible than traditional means of exhaust gas treatment such as fabric filters and catalyst honeycombs. This project funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Back To Top

Particle Agglomeration Sensor

Sorbent injection is a mature and cost effective technology for the control of mercury (Hg) emissions from coal-fired power plants (CFPPs). Sorbent particles are injected upstream of electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) or fabric filters (FFs) to capture Hg0, and Hg2+. Mercury species are captured through both chemical and physical adsorption, and Hg removal efficiency generally increases as sorbent injection rate increases. However, based on results from some full-scale sorbent injection tests, Hg removal efficiency can reach a plateau as sorbent injection rate exceeds a certain value. One of the possible explanations for this phenomenon is that an increased particle agglomeration rate, driven by the higher particle mass loadings in the feed lines at higher sorbent injection rates, shifts the as-delivered particle size distribution (PSD) to larger particle sizes. This would reduce the available particle surface area for Hg adsorption and limit Hg removal efficiency. The objective of this project is to conduct bench-scale experiments to examine if sorbent particle agglomeration is the primary cause of this performance-limiting phenomenon. A novel agglomeration sensor will be used to detect the change of PSD along the sorbent supply line. This project is funded by BASF.

Back To Top

Droplet Vaporization under Asymmetric Condition

This project is part of the MEMS research at the ATESR lab and entails the study and development of liquid fueled MEMS which is one of the most pressing hurdles in the field. In liquid-fueled combustion, miniaturization reduces characteristic length scales which in turn increase property gradients. In an attempt to understand how the high gradients affect the combustion process, this work is focused on investigating microscale droplet vaporization phenomena under asymmetric conditions. A novel Circular Couette Flow Reactor (CCFR) is used to impose thermal and convective asymmetries on vaporizing acetone droplets. Planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) images of the vaporizing droplets rotating in the CCFR then reveal asymmetries in the fuel vapor distribution under different conditions. This project funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Back To Top

Methane Gas Powered Fuel Cell

The present investigation addresses the important challenge of protecting environmental resources while expanding the increased quality of life that accompanies access to electric power. Specifically, the proposed investigation seeks to optimize a coupled waste-treatment-to-power system, suitable for use in rural areas, which recovers methane gas produced during a waste digestion process and provides it to a fuel cell that in turn generates electric power. In addition, because both the waste digestion process and the fuel cell are temperature-sensitive, a combined waste-treatment-to-power system provides an opportunity for heat regeneration between the two systems. The advantages of such a coupled system grow increasingly important for rural, poorly electrified regions at mid- to high- latitudes (e.g., central and northern Asia, southern and southwestern Africa) and higher altitudes where seasonal temperature variations can challenge the thermal equilibria of both waste digestion processes and fuel cells.

This investigation involves a vertically integrated team of students comprised of IIT undergraduate and graduate students, as well as local high school students. The project is designed to stimulate interest in research in high school and undergraduate students by fostering relationships and mentoring between participants enrolled at different levels of the educational enterprise. This project funded by a grant from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA).

Back To Top

Power MEMS

Research is conducted for the development of millimeter-scale micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS). A micro-scale combustor can achieve power densities  (power per unit volume)  of  2000  mega-watts per cubic-meters whereas the best lithium battery technology only delivers 0.4 mega-watts per cubic-meters.  As a result, there is substantial interest in power MEMS as a replacement in applications that would ordinarily be battery powered.  Military interest derives from the need to deploy remote sensors and devices, whereas commercial interest centers on replacement of batteries in a variety of portable electronics. One of the most pressing  hurdles remaining is that all power MEMS prototypes to date have been demonstrated using gaseous fuels. However, liquid fuels-and therefore liquid fuel atomization-are crucial to the future development of power MEMS. Without the energy density of liquid fuels (500-700 times greater than gaseous fuels like hydrogen and methane), power MEMS devices will not have long enough refueling intervals to be of use. A method of liquid fuel delivery and atomization is being developed at the ATESR Laboratory. Conventional atomization techniques where liquid fuels are forced at high pressure through pinhole orifices encounter daunting challenges when shrunk to the MEMS scale.

Back To Top

Last updated: 12/01/2008

Questions? Please contact the webmaster!