Performance of electric arc furnace slag as oxygen carrier in chemical-looping combustion process

The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of an electric arc furnace slag (EAFS) sample from Turkey as oxygen carrier (OC) in syngas-fueled chemical-looping combustion (CLC) process. The CLC tests were performed at 800 degrees C fluidized bed conditions for 50 cycles using CO and H-2 gases to constitute fuel atmospheres. EAFS exhibited an "activation behavior" which was characterized by a substantial increase on reactivity throughout the first 15 cycles of all tests. After that point, the reactivity of the OC became almost stable and more than 85% mean fuel gas conversion was obtained in all tests. Considering the abovementioned fuel conversion efficiency and the low cost of the EAFS it is concluded that, provided that the iron content can be increased by means of floating or magnetic separation techniques, the utilization of EAFS as OC may be both environmentally benign and favorable in terms of CLC technology.