An Eco-friendly Process to Produce High-Purity Nano-γ-Al2O3 from Aluminum Scrap Using a Novel Electrolysis Technique for Petroleum Industry Applications

• Published in: Arabian journal for science and engineering (2011) 2023-12, Vol.48 (12), p.15915-15925
• Main Authors: Baqur, Mohammed S., Hamied, Ramzy S., Sukkar, Khalid A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aluminum; Aluminum oxide; Catalysts; Chemical reactions; Electrolysis; Engineering; Humanities and Social Sciences; Industrial applications; Metal scrap; multidisciplinary; Petroleum industry; Petroleum refining; Pore size; Purity; Refineries; Research Article-Chemical Engineering; Science; Transitional aluminas
• ISSN: 2193-567X; 1319-8025; 2191-4281
• DOI: 10.1007/s13369-023-07877-8

Petroleum refineries widely use γ-Al 2 O 3 in multiphase reactors as a catalyst support material. The techniques used to synthesize this support are usually expensive and complicated. In the present study, high-purity nano-γ-Al 2 O 3 was produced from aluminum waste (scrap) for the first time, using a novel eco-friendly electrolysis method. A special electrical cell consisting of two aluminum electrodes was designed and manufactured for this electrolysis process. The electrochemical reactions in the cell were managed by an efficient control system. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results indicated that the structure of the prepared nano-γ-Al 2 O 3 was highly crystalline with high purity. The total surface area and pore size of the synthesized nano-γ-Al 2 O 3 were 219 m 2 /g and 0.316 cm 2 /g, respectively. The prepared nano-alumina in this work can be used successfully as a catalyst support for petroleum industry applications. Additionally, the electrolysis method is characterized by high economic feasibility with a production rate of 91.7% and the yield of produced nano-γ-Al 2 O 3 was (0.053 g/cm h). Finally, this method is regarded as highly flexible, simple, and eco-friendly synthesis.