Effect of Cu Doping on the Dielectric Properties of Iron–Aluminum Spinel Catalyst and Their Performance in Microwave-Catalyzed Decomposition of Medical Waste
摘要
Inexpensive iron-based catalysts with partially filled 3d orbitals are one of the most prospective catalysts for converting spent polymers into hydrogen-rich gases by microwave. However, most iron-based catalysts synthesized have poor microwave absorption, especially the FeAl catalyst synthesized by microwave combustion, which are mixed with disposable medical masks (DMMs) heated to 201 °C in 1200 W microwave field within 15 min with very slow heating efficiency. Here, the introduction of Cu into the FeAl catalyst led to the catalyst lattice reconstruction and the creation of lattice defects and oxygen vacancies, which improved the electrical conductivity and dielectric properties of the catalyst (FeCuAl). The mixture of FeCuAl catalyst and DMMs can be rapidly heated to about 800 °C within 10 min. The increase of microwave power accelerated the pyrolysis reaction process of DMMs and promoted the effective collision of active centers with hydrocarbons, leading to a decrease in dehydrogenation efficiency. The content of non-condensable gas increased from 73.91 to 80.63 wt% and the hydrogen content decreased from 39.81 to 32.48 vol% as the increase of microwave power from 900 to 1500 W. This work improves the dielectric properties of iron-based catalysts by doping-induced defects, which provides ideas for the development of advanced microwave pyrolysis catalysts.
Graphical Abstract