Copper-Loaded Adsorbents for Efficient CO Elimination in Coal Mine Upper Corners: Performance and Resource Implications

Abstract

Elevated carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations within upper mine corners frequently surpass permissible safety thresholds, presenting significant health hazards to personnel and operational risks due to chronic exposure. To address this, molecular sieve and activated carbon adsorbents were synthesized via cuprous chloride (CuCl) impregnation. Characterization revealed that CuCl-loaded molecular sieve adsorbents exhibited a reduction in specific surface area, diminished pore volume, and an increase in average pore diameter. CuCl dispersion occurred predominantly as an effective monolayer on the carrier surface, indicative of optimal loading efficiency. Static adsorption experiments demonstrated superior CO elimination efficiency for the CuCl-modified molecular sieve, achieving a maximum capacity of 61.17%. Dynamic adsorption performance was optimized under conditions of central axial placement, a flow velocity of 1.0 m·s^–1, and an adsorbent mass of 600 g, yielding a peak elimination rate of 82 ppm·min^–1. Orthogonal testing identified the relative significance of operational parameters influencing dynamic performance, ranked as: adsorbent mass > adsorbent position > flow velocity. These findings elucidate fundamental structure–activity relationships and provide critical insights for advancing CO mitigation technologies in coal mine upper corners.