3. Air and water pollution control in stationary plants

Catalytic oxidation processes are primarily aimed at organic compounds present in the air (volatile organic compounds VOC) or in water (organic pollutants generating TOC, total organic carbon). Inorganic compounds such as ammonia are also targeted by these processes.

Generally speaking, the reactions in the air are similar to those in automotive pollution control. In essence, we'll be looking at what distinguishes automotive VOC treatment processes from those of stationary plants. Oxygen oxidation reactions in water are dominated by specific process engineering problems with the need to optimize the three-phase gas (O ₂ or air)/liquid (polluted water)/solid (catalyst) contact. We will see that it is possible to reduce process complexity by using two-phase processes, either by implementing liquid oxidants (hydrogen peroxide)...