Process for simultaneously removing sulfur oxides and particulates

A gas purification process is described comprising the steps of: withdrawing a particulate-laden gaseous stream comprising particulates and sulfur oxides from a combustor of a processing unit selected from the group consisting of a catalytic cracking unit, a synthetic fuels plant, a coal liquefaction plant, a gasification plant, a power plant, a paper mill, a steel mill, and a waste treatment facility; removing large gross particulates from the particulate-laden gaseous stream in at least one cyclone by passing the particulate-laden gaseous stream through at least one cyclone; feeding the particulate-laden gaseous stream to a vessel after the particulate-laden gaseous stream has been passed through at least one cyclone, the vessel having a bed of sulfur oxide capturing and particulate-removing material comprising at least one member selected from the group consisting of adsorbers and adsorbers with at least one promoter thereon, the adsorbers substantially comprising an oxide of at least one metal selected from the group consisting of aluminum, bismuth, manganese, yttrium, antimony, tin, a rare earth metal, a Group Ia metal, and Group 2a metal, and the promoter selected from the group consisting essentially of a rare earth metal, a Group 8 metal, chromium, vanadium, rhenium, and combinations thereof; substantially decreasing the concentration of both particulates and sulfur oxides in the particulate-laden gaseous stream in the vessel; and the decreasing comprising simultaneously removing a substantial portion of the particulates and a substantial portion of the sulfur oxides from the particulate-laden gaseous stream by passing the particulate-laden gaseous stream through a portion of the bed of sulfur oxide-capturing and particulate-removing material in the vessel