Abstract
•The removal of isovaleric acid and trimethylamine by nonthermal plasma was studied.•The influences of injected energy and flowrate were tested.•A model based on chemical and mass transfer steps was developed.•The byproducts of isovaleric acid and trimethylamine were identified and evaluated.•The degradation pathways of the two VOCs were discussed.
The removal of isovaleric acid (IVA) and trimethylamine (TMA) using nonthermal plasma (NTP) in a continuous surface discharge reactor is investigated. The influence of the energy density shows that its increment is accompanied by the increase of the removal rate. At flowrate equal to 2m3h−1, when energy density extends three times, the removal rates of IVA and TMA are increased from 5 to 15mmolm−2h−1 and from 4 to 11mmolm−2h−1, respectively. The impact of relative humidity (RH) is also studied. An increase in % RH (up to 20%) leads to a decrease of the removal rate. Additionally, the formation of by-products in the surface discharge reactor and the plausible reaction mechanism of the two VOC were also detected and discussed. Moreover, a kinetic model taking into account the mass transfer step is developed in order to represent the experimental results. The model shows a good agreement with experimental results.