Mechanism and kinetic of piezo-catalytic desulfurization of model and actual fuel samples over CexOy/SrO nanocomposite at room temperature

Karwan M Rahman; Omid Amiri; Sangar S Ahmed; Savana J Ismael; Noor S Rasul; Karukh A Babakrb; Mahnaz Dadkhah; Mohammed A Jamal

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e24707

Mechanism and kinetic of piezo-catalytic desulfurization of model and actual fuel samples over Ce_xO_y/SrO nanocomposite at room temperature

Heliyon. 2024 Jan 18;10(2):e24707. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e24707. eCollection 2024 Jan 30.

Authors

Karwan M Rahman¹, Omid Amiri², Sangar S Ahmed¹, Savana J Ismael¹, Noor S Rasul¹, Karukh A Babakrb³, Mahnaz Dadkhah⁴, Mohammed A Jamal³

Affiliations

¹ Chemistry Department, College of Science, Salahaddin University, Kirkuk Road, 44001, Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq.
² Department of Medical Biochemical Analysis, Cihan University-Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq.
³ Department of Petroleum and Mining Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Tishk International University, Erbil, Iraq.
⁴ Department of Chemistry, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia.

Abstract

SO_x emissions are primarily caused by compounds containing sulfur in petroleum and fuels, which lead to severe air pollution. For this reason, it is necessary to develop a fast and simple desulfurization method in order to comply with ever-increasing environmental regulations. The newly discovered piezo-catalyst nanocomposite Ce_xO_y/SrO can convert mechanical energy directly into chemical energy, thereby enabling mechanically oxidative sulfur desulfurization. 320 W of bath sonication were used to polarize and activate the prepared piezo-catalyst nanocomposite Ce_xO_y/SrO for sulfur removal from thiophene and dibenzothiophene as model fuels and kerosene as a real fuel. Using uniform and spherical CeO₂/SrO nanocomposites resulted in the highest desulfurization rates of 95.4 %, 97.3 %, and 59.7 %, respectively, for thiophene and dibenzothiophene. This study examined the effect of several parameters, such as sulfur concentration, pH of fuel, dosage of CexOy/SrO nanocomposite, power and time of ultrasonic, and shaking time, on the piezo-desulfurization of thiophene (TP) and dibenzothiophene (DBTP). To identify the major active species in piezo desulfurization, radical trapping experiments were conducted. This study investigated the possibility of reusing the catalyst, and the piezo-desulfurization activity that was demonstrated in the removal of TP and DBTP after 11 cycles as well as the ability of the catalyst to remove real fuel even after 14 cycles was promising. As the kinetic results show, the reaction follows the second order with K = 0.0050. Also, thermodynamic results showed the oxidation of sulfide to sulfoxide and sulfoxide is endothermic. Activation energy for second order rate constant is (3.824 Kj/mole). 0.0236 mol^-1. Sec^-1 was calculated for Arrhenius Constant.

Keywords: CexOy/SrO nanocomposite; Kerosene; Model fuel; Piezo; Piezo-desulfurization.