Odor control has gained importance for ensuring a comfortable living environment. In this paper, the authors report the experimental results of a study on the detailed characteristics of a laminated film-electrode and a laminated film-electrode packed-bed nonthermal plasma reactor, which are types of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) reactor used for odor control. These plasma reactors can be potentially used for the decomposition of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and reduction of NO(x). The reactor is driven by a low-cost 60-Hz neon transformer. Removal efficiencies under various experimental conditions are studied. The complete decomposition of the main odor component, namely, NH(3), is achieved in a dry environment. The retention times are investigated for the complete removal of NH(3) in the case of the film-electrode plasma reactor and the film-electrode packed-bed plasma reactor. The removal efficiency of the former reactor is lower than that of the latter reactor. Mixing another odor component such as CH(3)CHO in the gas stream has no significant effect on NH(3) removal efficiency.
Keywords: acetaldehyde; ammonia; chemical reaction; living environment; nonthermal plasma; odor control; packed-bed; plasma.