½Mn2O3 → MnO + ¼O2 (1)
MnO + NaOH → ½H2 + NaMnO2 (2)
NaMnO2 + ½H2O → ½Mn2O3 + NaOH (3)
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H2O → H2 + ½O2 (4)
Most work on the manganese oxide cycle has focused on the hydrogen generating step (Equation 2) and the product recovery step (Equation 3) with little work done on the reduction step (Equation 1). It is essential to understand the reduction step because the entire feasibility of the manganese oxide cycle is based on this reaction having a high overall conversion. Specifically, the viability of the MnO and O2 phase separation must be investigated to determine how much recombination might occur during the quench step. In this study, experimental designs were done to investigate the affect of oxygen on the conversion of Mn2O3 to MnO. Along with the results from this study, results from a CFD simulation of Mn2O3 through an aerosol flow reactor will be presented.