Kinetic Study of Thermal Degradation of Hazardous Organic Compounds in Different Atmospheres

Effects of coprocessing hazardous organic waste in high-temperature industrial furnaces with oxidative or inert atmospheres were studied using two typical types of organic matter, naphthalene and resorcinol. Thermal degradation experiments of solid naphthalene and resorcinol were performed in a high-temperature tube furnace with a nitrogen or air atmosphere. Concentrations of naphthalene and resorcinol lost as vapor and trapped in absorption liquids during calcination were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and spectrophotometry, respectively. Degradation kinetics were investigated, and activation energies and preexponential factors for organic matter in various types of industrial furnace were determined. The results showed that the degradation ratios and degradation rates of naphthalene and resorcinol increased with increasing temperature. Degradation rates of these two organic matters were faster in nitrogen than those in air. Degradation rates of these two organic matters were related to their thermal stabilities, and the degradation rate of resorcinol was higher compared with naphthalene. Under the experimental conditions, these two organic matters could degrade completely. Activation energies for degradation of naphthalene in nitrogen and air atmosphere were found to be 16.71 and 19.42kJ/mol, respectively, and activation energies for degradation of resorcinol in nitrogen and air atmosphere were found to be 23.74 and 25.98kJ/mol, respectively. The larger activation energy in air may be attributed to the simultaneous combustion reaction due to the presence of oxygen. These results can be used to predict thermal degradation laws for other organic matters.