Claims
- 1. An apparatus for altering a carbon containing compound in a aqueous mixture, said carbon containing compound having an ozone reaction rate less than or equal to the ozone reaction rate of pentachlorophenol, said apparatus comprising:
(a) a vessel having an inlet for receiving said aqueous mixture; (b) said vessel providing a non-oxidative atmosphere within; (c) at least one first electrode positioned adjacent to a surface of the aqueous mixture and a second electrode in contact with the aqueous mixture, wherein a gap between said first electrode and said surface is from about 0.5 cm to about 5 cm; wherein (d) applying electric potential to said electrodes and creating a corona discharge from said at least one first electrode, alters said carbon containing compound.
- 2. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said carbon containing compound is selected from the group consisting of pentachlorophenol (PCP), perchloroethylene (PCE), methylisobutylketone (MIBK), carbon tetrachloride (CCl4), and combinations thereof.
- 3. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said non-oxidative atmosphere is selected from the group consisting of inert gas and hydrogen.
- 4. The apparatus as recited in claim 3, wherein said inert gas is selected from the group consisting of noble gas and nitrogen.
- 5. The apparatus as recited in claim 4, wherein said noble gas is argon.
- 6. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said electric potential is from about 1 kV to about 20 kV.
- 7. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said first electrode comprises a dielectric material that provides a dielectric barrier.
- 8. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said first electrode comprises an inner conductor and surrounded by a conductive epoxy and covered with a dielectric tube.
- 9. The apparatus as recited in claim 8, wherein said electrical potential is an alternating current with a frequency of at least about 200 Hz.
- 10. The apparatus as recited in claim 8, wherein said electrical potential is an alternating current with a frequency of at least about 200 Hz.
- 11. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said at least one first electrode is cylindrical.
- 12. The apparatus as recited in claim 11, wherein said cylindrical at least one first electrode is positioned concentrically through a second electrode which is a flow tube.
- 13. The apparatus as recited in claim 12, wherein the distance between said at least one first electrode and said flow tube is controlled to achieve a preferred gap between a falling film through said flow tube and said first electrode to achieve an optimum plasma field.
- 14. The apparatus as recited in claim 13, wherein said preferred gap is between about 0.5 cm to about 1.0 cm.
Parent Case Info
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/299,677, which is a divisional of application Ser. No. 08/926,340, which is a continuation-in-part of issued U.S. Pat. No. 5,980,701.
Government Interests
[0002] This invention was made with Government support under Contract DE-AC06 76RLO 1830 awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy. The Government has certain rights in the invention.
Divisions (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
08926340 |
Sep 1997 |
US |
Child |
09299677 |
Apr 1999 |
US |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09299677 |
Apr 1999 |
US |
Child |
09733763 |
Dec 2000 |
US |