Study on mechanism of mercury oxidation by fly ash from coal combustion

To understand the interaction of fly ash and mercury, systematic experiments on mercury oxidation in single flue gas composition are conducted on a fixed bed reactor system, the desorption rate and speciation of mercury are valuated. The results indicate that fly ash itself can significantly promote elemental mercury oxidation. A classification of fly ash activated sites is developed according to the speciation of mercury during adsorption-desorption tests, the reaction mechanism of mercury oxidation by fly ash is proposed. Acid gas can promote mercury oxidation and improve the stability of oxidation product. Lattice oxygen is an important oxidant of mercury oxidation.