| In recent years, supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) has emerged as a promising new technology for the safe destruction of hazardous organic waste. One of the obstacles that is inhibiting the development of SCWO into a commercially viable industrial process is the problem of corrosion. In this study, a bench-scale stainless-steel flow reactor for SCWO studies was constructed. The corrosion of the reactor material and the SCWO degradation efficiency for the destruction of o-dichlorobenzene by hydrogen peroxide under varying conditions were examined. Flame atomic absorption spectroscopy was utilized to monitor the corrosion products. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was employed to monitor the degree of degradation of the o-dichlorobenzene.; Corrosion was found to increase with increasing degree of oxygenation. Exposure of the reactor to open air between experiments was also found to be a contributing factor to the corrosion of SCWO apparatus. In the presence of chloride ions, corrosion was found to decrease at temperatures above the critical point. However, when no chloride ions were present, chromium was dealloyed out of the reactor material and an increase in the corrosion was observed. When more than twice the required stoichiometric amount of oxidizer was used, at temperatures above 375°C, the degradation efficiency for the SCWO of o-dichlorobenzene was determined to be greater than 99%, with no detectable by-products formed.; Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to aid in the understanding of water and oxygen above their respective critical points. Coexistence curves and critical point parameters were determined for simulated fluids. The structures of supercritical water and oxygen were examined using radial distribution functions (RDF). |
