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Russian scientists create glass-fiber to effectively purify oil products

MOSCOW, November 29. /TASS/ Researchers from Tyumen State University (TyumSU) have created a novel glass-fiber material modified with silicon dioxide (SiO2), while using iron oxide (Fe2O3) as active components, the press service of TyumSU said. The development is suggested to be used for purification of oil products from sulfur compounds.

Glass fiber is silicon-based fiber doped with active components, various compounds of precious metals capable of catalyzing many chemical reactions. Due to low cost and high efficiency in the reduction of stink damp (H2S), the poisonous sulfur compound and one of the main oil pollutants, the glass fiber materials are already actively applied in the oil production industry.

However, all modern methods of desulfation (purification from sulfur compounds) for oil and gases have their own drawbacks, which motivate scientists to search for an optimal solution. Great progress in this field has been achieved by Tyumen scientists recently. They have created the new modified glass-fiber which by far exceeds the performance of analogous materials available on the market for oil purification.

The new material can be described as silicon-based fiber enriched with catalytically active iron oxide (Fe2O3). The composite is then covered with an additional layer of silicon oxide (SiO2) which increases the active surface area of material by a factor of 20-30. Moreover, the additional carrier stabilizes the active component (Fe2O3).

As a result, the create iron-oxide-based glass-fiber for purification of oil products from stink damp, one needs to take about 3.5 less of active metal (iron) compared to vanadium-oxide-based fibers. Additionally, the selective oxidation of H2S with the vanadium oxide (V2O5) catalyst takes place only at temperatures below 200 degrees Centigrade, whereas the novel material has no restrictions in the temperature domain.

The scientific article describing the results of development has been published in the journal Catalysis Communications.