Selective Removal of Organonitrogen Compounds in Fuel using Functional Polybenzimidazole Nanofibres: A Combined Experimental and Theoretical Study

Organonitrogen compounds present in fuel oils are deleterious to the environment as well as refining catalysts. Herein, functional polybenzimidazole (PBI) nanofibres fabricated in the presence of N-compounds (nitrogen-containing compounds) were employed for the selective adsorption of quinoline, pyrimidine and carbazole, largely found in diesel fuel. Adsorption capacities of 11.5 mg g-1,11.8 mg g-1 and 11.0 mg g-1 were observed for pyrimidine, carbazole and quinoline, respectively. Density functional theory (DFT) studies indicated π-π interactions/stacking and hydrogen bond interactions between the nitrogen atom of N-compounds and PBI. The study clearly shows the potential of PBI material use for the selective removal of organonitrogen compounds in fuels.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Abdul-quadir,M.S., van der Westhuizen,R., Welthagen,W., Ferg,E.E., Tshentu,Z.R., Ogunlaja,A.S.
Format:	Digital revista
Language:	English
Published:	The South African Chemical Institute 2019
Online Access:	http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0379-43502019000100012
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