Environmental flue gas purification system: exploration and limitations in expanding the boundaries of environmental protection applications

With the deepening of environmental protection concepts and the diversification of pollution control needs, environmental flue gas purification systems are extending from traditional industrial fields to more emerging scenarios. In the process of dealing with new pollution sources such as agricultural waste gas and urban household smoke, its technological application continues to innovate, but at the same time, it also exposes limitations in adapting to new scenarios and handling complex components, becoming a key breakthrough for industry development.
The environmental flue gas purification system has demonstrated unique value in the pollution control of agriculture and animal husbandry. The fecal treatment process of large-scale livestock and poultry farms will produce a large amount of odorous gases such as ammonia and hydrogen sulfide. If not treated, it will not only affect the lives of surrounding residents, but also exacerbate air pollution. In response to this issue, miniaturized and corrosion-resistant flue gas purification equipment has begun to be applied. After installing a dedicated purification system in a large-scale pig farm, the ammonia emission concentration was reduced from 150 milligrams per cubic meter to below 20 milligrams through a process combining chemical absorption and biological filtration. The hydrogen sulfide removal rate reached over 90%, and the number of complaints in the surrounding area decreased by 80%. This type of application fills the technological gap in agricultural flue gas treatment and provides new solutions for improving rural ecological environment.
In the field of urban life, environmental flue gas purification systems have also begun to serve scenarios that are closer to people's livelihoods. The smoke generated by garbage transfer stations, kitchen waste treatment plants and other places has complex components, containing volatile organic compounds and odorous substances, which are difficult to effectively control through traditional treatment methods. After the introduction of mobile flue gas purification equipment at a garbage transfer station in a certain city, the removal rate of volatile organic compounds reached over 75% through the combination of activated carbon adsorption and photocatalytic oxidation technology, and the odor in the station area and surrounding areas was significantly reduced. In addition, some catering concentration areas have piloted the installation of centralized oil fume purification systems, which collect and treat the oil fume from multiple restaurants in a centralized manner. The emission concentration has been reduced by 60% compared to decentralized treatment, solving the problem of catering oil fume disturbance to residents.
The coordinated development of environmental flue gas purification systems and clean energy utilization has become an important driving force for promoting the "dual carbon" goal. In the fields of biomass power generation and waste incineration power generation, flue gas purification systems not only need to control pollutant emissions, but also need to cooperate with energy utilization efficiency improvement. A certain biomass power plant has optimized the heat recovery design of the flue gas purification system to recover waste heat from flue gas during desulfurization and denitrification processes, which has increased the overall energy utilization efficiency of the power plant by 3 percentage points. At the same time, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the purified flue gas is high and the purity is stable, creating conditions for the application of carbon capture technology. A certain waste incineration power plant has achieved preliminary capture of carbon dioxide in the purified flue gas for greenhouse planting, forming a cycle mode of "energy environmental protection agriculture".
Despite the continuous expansion of application fields, environmental flue gas purification systems still face some new challenges.
Firstly, the treatment efficiency for low concentration and multi-component flue gas needs to be improved. The smoke in the fields of agriculture and daily life often has the characteristics of low concentration, complex composition, and high volatility. Existing purification systems are prone to unstable purification efficiency when dealing with such smoke. For example, the flue gas from a certain kitchen treatment plant contains dozens of volatile organic compounds, and the concentration fluctuates with the treatment capacity. The total removal rate of the purification system during peak load periods will decrease from 80% to below 50%, making it difficult to stably meet emission standards.
Secondly, the anti-interference ability and adaptability of the equipment are insufficient. The smoke in emerging application scenarios often contains a large amount of dust, water vapor, or viscous substances, which can easily cause blockage, corrosion, or catalyst poisoning of purification equipment. The purification system of a certain livestock and poultry farm had to be shut down frequently for cleaning due to the high amount of dust and water vapor in the flue gas. After running for 3 months, the filter material was severely blocked, and the resistance doubled. The maintenance cycle was shortened from 3 months to 1 month, and the operating cost increased significantly.
Thirdly, the energy efficiency ratio of miniaturized equipment needs to be optimized. In order to meet the demand for dispersed pollution sources, the application of small purification equipment is increasing, but such equipment generally has the problem of high energy consumption. The small-scale purification system in a certain catering concentration area consumes 2-3 times more energy per cubic meter of flue gas compared to large-scale industrial systems. Long term operation will increase users' energy expenditure and affect promotion enthusiasm. In addition, the automation level of small devices is relatively low, requiring frequent manual operation and maintenance. For small places lacking professional personnel, it is difficult to ensure stable operation of the equipment.
In response to these issues, the industry is seeking solutions from two aspects: technological optimization and model innovation. Equipment manufacturers have developed adaptive purification systems that monitor changes in smoke composition and concentration in real-time through sensors, automatically adjust the dosage of chemicals or operating parameters, and improve the stability of low concentration and fluctuating smoke treatment. In terms of materials, anti poisoning catalysts and anti clogging filter materials have been developed to extend equipment maintenance cycles. The service life of a new type of filter material has been doubled compared to traditional products. At the same time, some regions are exploring the equipment operation model of "renting instead of buying", with professional environmental protection companies responsible for equipment operation and maintenance, reducing users' initial investment and management costs, and increasing the popularity of small equipment in dispersed pollution sources.
The application boundaries of environmental flue gas purification systems are constantly expanding, reflecting the trend of environmental protection technology covering all fields. With the increasing demand for smoke control in agriculture and daily life, the system needs to continuously innovate in handling low concentration complex smoke, improving equipment adaptability, and optimizing energy efficiency of small equipment. Through the combination of technological progress and model innovation, environmental flue gas purification systems are expected to play a role in a wider range of scenarios, providing stronger technical support for improving the ecological environment in all aspects and promoting green development.