The present invention relates to a method for the purification of alkanes, especially methane, wherein an alkane comprising impurities, especially methane, is reacted with an active compound, optionally in the presence of sulfur trioxide, whereby the impurities are removed. The present invention furthermore relates to the use of the active compound and sulfur trioxide in the purification of alkanes, especially methane.

The invention relates to a method of reducing carbon dioxide and metal-containing dust and, more particularly, to a method of simultaneously reducing carbon dioxide and metal-containing dust by passing an off-gas, which contains carbon dioxide or carbon dioxide and metal-containing dust, through a reactor in which a sulfur-oxidizing microorganism is grown using carbon dioxide as a carbon source to produce sulfuric acid, and producing metal sulfates (MeSO.sub.4) by reaction of the produced sulfur acid with metal components present in the off-gas.

The present invention describes methods for absorbing a targeted chemical compound from a gas stream into a scrubbing solution for various uses and with various benefits. Methods are described to produce a gas stream that can be further processed with operational benefits, such as through condensing and wastewater treatment with a lower load on the wastewater treatment system. Methods are described for adsorbing the targeted compound with reduced condensation of water from the gas stream. Methods are described for producing a liquid stream comprising an absorbed form of the targeted compound for use as a saleable product, such as adsorbing ammonia for the production of a fertilizer, wherein the concentration of the absorbed form may be increased through reduced condensation from the gas stream. Methods are described for producing a lower volume liquid waste stream from the absorption process through the use of reduced condensation of the gas stream.

Provided is a composition for removing a sulfur-containing compound present in liquid or vapor, the sulfur-containing compound being hydrogen sulfide, an —SH group-containing compound or a mixture thereof, the composition containing an α,β-unsaturated aldehyde represented by the following general formula (1) as an active ingredient; ##STR00001##
wherein R.sup.1 and R.sup.2 each independently represent an alkyl group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, an alkenyl group having 2 to 10 carbon atoms or an aryl group having 6 to 12 carbon atoms, or are connected to each other to represent an alkylene group having 2 to 6 carbon atoms; and R.sup.3 represents a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms, or is connected to R.sup.1 to represent an alkylene group having 2 to 6 carbon atoms.

The present disclosure relates to processes for desulfurizing hydrocarbon feedstocks. The processes may include introducing a feedstock comprising hydrogen sulfide to an absorber comprising a metal chelate to form a reduced metal chelate. The processes may further include introducing the reduced metal chelate to a photobioreactor comprising a phototrophic bacterium. The present disclosure also relates to apparatuses for desulfurizing hydrocarbon feedstock. An apparatus may include and absorber and a photobioreactor fluidly connected to the absorber. The photobioreactor may be an anaerobic vessel with a light source.

A gas purification device includes: a converter packed with a catalyst for hydrolyzing both carbonyl sulfide and hydrogen cyanide; an upstream heat exchanger for heat exchange between a gas to be introduced into the converter and a cooling fluid for cooling the gas; a reaction-temperature estimation member for estimating a reaction temperature inside the converter; and a flow-rate adjustment member for adjusting a flow rate of the cooling fluid flowing into the upstream heat exchanger based on an estimated value of the reaction-temperature estimation member to control the reaction temperature.

Described herein is a method of maintaining corn protein yield during extraction, comprising obtaining a corn gluten material, washing the corn gluten material to remove non-protein components with an ethanol-water solvent comprising at least 85 wt % ethanol to obtain a corn protein concentrate product, wherein the loss of corn protein content during extraction is less than 25% of total corn protein.

A gas conversion apparatus (100) for converting a process gas to one or more other gases comprises: means (105) for introducing process gas into a liquid medium in a column (125); and an ultrasonic energy generator (140) arranged to generate ultrasonic energy, the apparatus (100) being configured to launch ultrasonic energy generated by the generator (140) into the liquid medium such that process gas is exposed to ultrasonic energy, the apparatus (100) being arranged to allow collection of process gas that has been exposed to ultrasonic energy. The apparatus (100) also preferably comprises a microbubble generator (120) to generate microbubbles of the process gas for exposure to the ultrasonic energy. The ultrasonic energy generator (140) may be configured to generate ultrasonic energy as a consequence of a flow of a drive gas therethrough.

The invention relates to a method of reducing carbon dioxide and metal-containing dust and, more particularly, to a method of simultaneously reducing carbon dioxide and metal-containing dust by passing an off-gas, which contains carbon dioxide or carbon dioxide and metal-containing dust, through a reactor in which a sulfur-oxidizing microorganism is grown using carbon dioxide as a carbon source to produce sulfuric acid, and producing metal sulfates (MeSO.sub.4) by reaction of the produced sulfur acid with metal components present in the off-gas.

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for removing mercury from gases such as those discharged from roasters and other heat producing systems. In embodiments the method comprises reacting the mercury with dissolved molecular chlorine, and may also comprise reacting the mercury with mercuric chloride to yield mercurous chloride. The mercurous chloride may be removed by precipitation. There are also disclosed apparatuses for implementing the method.