Numerical Simulation of NOx Removal in N2/O2/H2O/CO2 Mixture Under Different Reduced Electric Fields

Abstract

Nitric oxides (NO and NO₂) and SO₂ emissions are major environmental problems because of their negative influence on human health and vegetation. The federal regulations on limiting the pollution emitted by the engines of motor vehicles have triggered intense research on new techniques for the removal of these pollutants.

In this work, analyze the time behavior of different species and their reaction rates using a model based on chemical kinetics equations. The considered model can describe the behavior of twenty different chemical species participating in one hundred selected chemical reactions. A large number of investigations considered the removal of NO_x showing the effects of N, O, and O₃ radicals, and also an analysis of other species such as negative ions O⁻₂, O⁻₃, O⁻₄, and radicals O₃, OH  presents in N₂/O₂/H₂O/CO₂ mixture. In particular, we analyze the time evolution of the rate coefficient and depopulation rate of certain reactions. We have found that the rate of depopulation of NO and NO₂ is substantially affected by the reduced electric field rise from 100-200 Td.