Comparison of the decomposition characteristics of aromatic VOCs using an electron beam hybrid system

Abstract We applied a hybrid technique to assess the decomposition characteristics of ethylbenzene and toluene that annexed the catalyst technique with existing electron beam (EB) technology. The removal efficiency of ethylbenzene in the EB–catalyst hybrid turned out to be 30% greater than that of EB-only treatment. We concluded that ethylbenzene was decomposed more easily than toluene by EB irradiation. We compared the independent effects of the EB–catalyst hybrid and catalyst-only methods, and observed that the efficiency of the EB–catalyst hybrid demonstrated approximately 6% improvement for decomposing toluene and 20% improvement for decomposing ethylbenzene. The G -values for ethylbenzene increased with initial concentration and reactor type: for example, the G -values by reactor type at 2800 ppmC were 7.5–10.9 (EB-only) and 12.9–25.7 (EB–catalyst hybrid). We also observed a significant decrease in by-products as well as in the removal efficiencies associated with the EB–catalyst hybrid technique.