Adsorption of gas mixtures in TSA adsorbers under various heat removal conditions

The aim of this article is to highlight the behavior differences between an indirectly cooled temperature swing adsorption (TSA) adsorber and other adsorbers classically studied in TSA systems (adiabatic, near-adiabatic and isothermal) during adsorption of a mixture of gases. For this purpose, a numerical model is presented and validated from experimental results.By means of this model, the temperature, gas molar fractions and adsorbed concentration profiles are drawn at different times. The various zones of the adsorption patterns are identified and compared. The influence of the feed and initial bed temperatures is discussed too. From these results, the advantages of indirectly cooled adsorbers are pointed out. A new criterion for the possibility of omitting the cooling step in TSA cycles, based on the bed cooling efficiency, is then proposed for the indirectly cooled adsorbers.     

Modeling of the Wall Effect in Packed Bed Adsorption

A model developed for catalytic packed bed reactors and consistently accounting for the influence of the tube wall on porosity, flow and transport phenomena is used in order to simulate the operation of packed bed adsorbers. By comparison of simulation results with reduced versions of the model the influence of the wall on the adsorber performance is worked out and found to be major at low ratios between tube and particle diameter. The interaction between maldistribution, thermal effects and intraparticle resistances in such adsorber tubes is discussed.     

Simulation of micro- and macro-transport in a packed bed of porous adsorbents by lattice Boltzmann methods

In this study we report 3D simulation of concentration profiles in a fixed bed packed with spherical porous adsorbents using lattice Boltzmann methods (LBMs). The lattice models have been developed to investigate evolution of concentration profiles due to inter- and intra-particle mass transport in an adsorber having small tube-to-sphere diameter (d_t/d_p) ratios. The multi-scaling feature of LBMs permits full 3D simulation of concentration profiles both in the bed voids and within the pores of the adsorbents without using any empirical correlations or without making 1D or 2D approximations that are usually made in traditional numerical methods. The model simulation is carried out for varying packing arrangements and small to large pore diffusivities. The simulation results show significant concentration gradients for small pore diffusivities and large particle size, which must be considered in predicting breakthrough and adsorption times for a tubular adsorber having d_t/d_p<10. The model predicted breakthrough curves are validated with the experimental data obtained by tomography technique in a tubular adsorber packed with zeolite particles.     

热管型船用吸附制冰机的设计

A heat pipe type adsorption ice maker with two adsorbers for fishing boats is designed by using ammonia as refrigerant and compound of activated carbon-CaCl2 as adsorbent. This type of heat pipe adsorber can solve the problem of incompatibility between ammonia, copper, seawater and steel. The working process of the ice maker with 8.7kg adsorbent per bed is simulated. The results show that the optimal semi-cycle time is about 9 min at the evaporating temperature of -15℃, where the corresponding cooling power, specific cooling power per kilogram adsorbent SCP and coefficient of refrigerant performance COP are respectively 3.6kW, 217W·kg-1 and 0.404.     

Adsorptive Behandlung VOC‐haltiger Abluftströme – Stand der Technik

VOC Adsorption Technology – State of the Art This review gives a general overview of the state of the art in VOC adsorption technology. An analysis of 247 plants built between 1986 and 2003 shows that only five combinations of desorption process and adsorber design are widely used in industry. Besides non‐regenerated fixed‐bed‐adsorbers these are PSA‐fixed‐bed‐, TSA‐fixed‐bed‐ (steam), TSA‐fixed‐bed‐ (purge gas) and TSA‐rotating‐disc‐adsorbers. Moving‐bed adsorbers can be found only in specific niches. In the second part of the article advantages as well as disadvantages of each technology are discussed based on typical examples from industry. These properties lead to specific limitations of each technology in industrial applications, which are visualized in a matrix plot.     

Simulation of 3D velocity and concentration profiles in a packed bed adsorber by lattice Boltzmann methods

Full 3D simulations of velocity and concentration profiles were carried out for the several ordered packing arrangements of spherical particles with small tube-to-particle diameter ratio (<10) using lattice Boltzmann methods. The effects of voids and diffusion coefficients on the adsorption concentration profiles in a packed bed of circular cross-section were investigated. In particular, the radial (r) and circumferential (θ) dependencies of the concentrations due to non-uniform velocity and particle voids across tube's cross-section, especially near the walls, were ascertained. The lattice Boltzmann technique allows simultaneous solution to velocity and concentration fields at all locations inside the packed tube without using any empirical correlations for certain transport parameters, for example, dispersion coefficient. Depending upon the packing arrangements and the magnitudes of diffusion coefficient, the concentration gradients in r- and θ-directions were found to be significant. The lattice model simulation results were also compared to the tomographic data obtained in a tubular adsorber packed with the zeolites coated glass beads and were found to be in reasonably good agreement.     

Modeling of counter-current adsorption in continuous liquid-solid circulating fluidized bed adsorption chromatography

Continuous chromatography using a liquid-solid circulating fluidized bed (LSCFB) is an efficient and eco-friendly system used for the separation and purification of biomolecules and radioactive waste. It combines continuous counter-current adsorption and simultaneous regeneration of solids. Here, we developed a mathematical model to study the performance of these counter-current adsorbers using MATLAB^TM which is a fundamental tool for scale up. This model predicts the adsorption zone length and height equivalent to theoretical plates (HETPs). In addition, this work also illustrates the comparative performance studies of adsorption in a conventional packed bed, expanded bed and LSCFB in terms of HETP values. At lower velocities such as 0.35 cm/s, HETPs of the LSCFB, packed bed, expanded bed are 5, 12, 18 cm, respectively.     

Modelling diffusion and adsorption of As species in Fe/GAC adsorbent beds

BACKGROUND: Arsenic decontamination of drinking water by adsorption is a simple and robust operation. When designing packed bed adsorbers for arsenic, the main problems are the slow diffusion kinetics of As in microporous media and the lack of simple equations for predicting the performance of the equipment. Commercial iron‐doped granular activated carbon adsorbents (Fe/GAC) for groundwater arsenic abatement were studied in this work. Basic parameters for arsenate (As^V) adsorption were measured and their performance at larger scale was simulated with an approximate analytical model. RESULTS: In the 0–300 µg_As L^?1 range, the As^V adsorption isotherm on Fe/GAC was found to be approximately linear. Assuming Henry's law for adsorption and homogeneous surface diffusion with constant diffusivity for intrapellet mass transfer, an approximate model for flow and adsorption of arsenate inside packed bed adsorbers was developed, and reduced to an analytic compact solution using the quasi‐lognormal distribution (Q‐LND) approximation. The use of this model with fitted and reported parameters enabled the approximate simulation of industrial adsorbers and home point‐of‐use filters. Results show that industrial adsorbers meet the breakthrough condition with incomplete utilization of the adsorbent unless convenient process configurations are used. In point‐of‐use systems with short residence times intraparticle diffusion would drastically reduce the adsorbent performance. CONCLUSION: Assuming linear adsorption of As^V over Fe/GAC, an analytical approximate solution for flow and adsorption in packed beds can be obtained. The model seems to represent correctly the main features of industrial and home filters, however, more experimental data is necessary for scale‐up purposes. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Production of pure ethanol from azeotropic solution by pressure swing adsorption

Pressure swing adsorption (PSA) is attractive for final separation in the process of water removal especially for fuel ethanol production. Despite many researches on simulation and experimental works on adsorption of water on 3A zeolite in a fixed bed, none have studied a process with the actual PSA system. The purpose of this research was to study the PSA process with two adsorbers and effects of several parameters. The research also included analysis of kinetic and thermodynamic data of ethanol-water adsorption on commercial 3A zeolites in a single fixed bed. A two-level factorial design experiment was used in this research work to preliminarily screen the influence and interaction among the factors. Effects of important parameters such as initial temperature, feed concentration and feed rate were investigated. It was proven that the Langmuir isotherm could best predict the experimental results. In the PSA pilot test, the principal factors, which had effects on the performance, were feed rate, feed concentration, adsorption pressure and the cycle time. Prediction of the process efficiency in terms of ethanol recovery and enrichment was proposed in the form of regression models. The results of the study in a fixed bed adsorber could help designing a pilot-scale PSA unit. The experiments proved to be successful in terms of producing high concentration ethanol with high percentage of ethanol recovery. With further simulation work the process could be scaled up for an industrial use.     

Visualization of water vapour flow in a packed bed adsorber by near-infrared diffused transmittance tomography

This work presents a procedure based on spatially-resolved near-infrared imaging, in order to observe temperature and composition maps in gas–solid packed beds subjected to effects of aspect ratio and non-isothermal conditions. The technique was applied to the water vapour flow in a packed bed adsorber of low aspect ratio, filled with silica gel, using a tuneable diode laser, focal planar array detector and tomographic reconstruction. The 2D projected images from parallel scanning permitted data to be retrieved from the packing and above the packing sections of 12.0×12.0×18.2 mm³ at a volume-resolution of 0.15×0.15×0.026 mm³ and a time-resolution of less than 3 min. The technique revealed uneven temperature and composition maps in the core packed bed and in the vicinity of the wall due to flow maldistribution. In addition, the heat uptake from the packed bed and local cross-mixing were experimentally ascertained by local profiles of the water vapour composition and temperature under various aspect ratios and feed flow rates. The relative deviations in temperature and compositions were 11.1% and 9.3%, respectively. The deviation in composition, which covers the packing and above the packing sections, was slightly higher than the deviation of 8% obtained up-to-date but was limited to the exit of a packed bed adsorber.     

KINETIC CHARACTERISTICS OF A BATCH ADSORBER OR AN ION EXCHANGE DEVICE OPERATED UNDER NONISOTHERMAL CONDITIONS

Abstract

A model was formulated for a batch adsorber or ion exchange device with heat generation inside the bulk liquid due to mixing or electrical heating and due to heat of adsorption. Internal and external particle mass and heat transfer gradients and heat transfer through the vessel wall were included. The effective diffusion coefficient was taken to be temperature dependent. Numerical calculations (by orthogonal collocation) give conditions for the existence of intra particle nonisothermity and show the effect of mixing and process temperature on adsorption kinetics.     

Exact universal uniqueness criteria for the adiabatic tubular packed bed reactor

Exact, universal a priori bounds and regions of multiplicity for the entire tubular packed bed reactor are developed by application of a technique reported in Chang and Calo, Chem. Engng Sci. 1979 34 285 to a cascade two-phase cell model for an nth order chemical reaction with interphase resistance to mass and heat transport, Le ≠ 1 (or Le = 1) and either lumped parameter catalyst particles or with intraparticle concentration gradients with uniform temperature. Both the more common case of interphase heat transfer greater than interphase mass transfer rate and the inverse case of particle over-temperature have been considered. In all cases it has been shown that the reactor conservation equations can be decoupled at certain points along the bed determined by the Lewis number, and that questions of multiplicity and uniqueness reduce to consideration of a single algebraic equation which is actually a form of the two-phase adiabatic CSTR. Also as for the CSTR, the topology of the adiabatic packed bed reactor is shown to be the simple cusp catastrophe. The application of the resultant criteria is quite simple and represents a practical step in the design procedure for highly exothermic reactions in packed beds. A flow chart of a suggested procedure is included.     

KINETIC CHARACTERISTICS OF A BATCH ADSORBER OR AN ION EXCHANGE DEVICE OPERATED UNDER NONISOTHERMAL CONDITIONS

A model was formulated for a batch adsorber or ion exchange device with heat generation inside the bulk liquid due to mixing or electrical heating and due to heat of adsorption. Internal and external particle mass and heat transfer gradients and heat transfer through the vessel wall were included. The effective diffusion coefficient was taken to be temperature dependent. Numerical calculations (by orthogonal collocation) give conditions for the existence of intra particle nonisothermity and show the effect of mixing and process temperature on adsorption kinetics.     

Lattice Boltzmann modelling of unsteady-state 2D concentration profiles in adsorption bed

This study describes a lattice Boltzmann model (LBM) developed to simulate two-dimensional (2D) unsteady-state concentration profiles, including breakthrough curves, in a tubular column packed with adsorbents. The model using d3q19 (three dimensions and 19 speeds) lattice solves the 3D time-dependent convection-diffusion-adsorption equation for an ideal binary gaseous mixture assuming different velocity profiles in the column, including radially flat (plug flow) and non-uniform across the column's cross-section. The simulation results show significant concentration gradient across the cross-section depending upon the d/d_p ratio. The model results corroborate the experimental measurements made in the adsorption bed that the concentration due to breakthrough may be larger near the wall than at the core of the column due to the relatively larger local velocity in the vicinity of the wall. The LBM results have significance from the perspective of the physical understanding of the concentration profiles prevalent in the adsorption bed as well as effective design of a large-scale column. The model results are validated with the analytical solution to 1D axial dispersion problem, and to a few simple flow problems, such as Poiseuille and Couette flows.     

The application of theoretical solutions to the differential mass balance equation for modeling of adsorptive desulfurization in a packed bed adsorber

Adsorptive removal of organosulfur compounds, lumped as total sulfur content, from a real diesel fuel was carried out in a packed bed adsorber. A novel approach was taken in the application of theoretical solutions to the differential mass balance equation using modern software tools, and one classic method as point of reference. Adsorptive desulfurization is a perspective downstream process to hydrodesulfurization for achieving sulfur concentration levels of less then 10 mg kg⁻¹. Compared to the conventional hydrodesulfurization process, the deep desulfurization can be accomplished without changing the physical properties of the product and at relatively low temperature and pressure. The adsorber apparatus comprised computer control, enabling completely automated operation. Adsorbent was activated carbon SOLCARB C from Chemviron Carbon, Belgium. The experimental results regarding the influence of flow rate and bed depth on the outlet sulfur concentration were evaluated as well as the models ability to describe the adsorption kinetics and to estimate the breakthrough curves. Ultra deep desulfurization of diesel fuel was achieved and it was determined that outlet sulfur concentration was being lowered by decreasing flow rate and increasing bed depth. The closest fit to the experimental data was achieved for the Bohart-Adams model.     

新型吸附床的研究进展

吸附床是吸附式制冷装置的核心部件,其性能的优劣直接关系到吸附式制冷装置的制冷效果.通过吸附床的热阻分析,得出强化吸附床传热的措施.文中重点介绍了提高吸附剂与换热壁面的换热系数和吸附剂间的导热系数来强化吸附床传热的方法,详细介绍了填充式吸附床、涂抹式吸附床以及固化式吸附床的结构特点,比较分析3种吸附床的传热传质特点,并阐...     

Experimental and Theoretical Investigation of Concentration and Temperature Profiles in a Narrow Packed Bed Adsorber

Significant radial profiles of concentration and temperature may exist in packed bed adsorbers, leading to a different breakthrough behavior at the wall than in the core of the bed. Respective data have been gained by near‐infrared tomography for zeolite and water in relatively narrow tubes, and are compared with the predictions of a two‐dimensional model. Though the agreement is satisfactory in total, some deviations from the experimental results have been observed. Model reductions can not be recommended due to complex interactions between thermal effects, channelling, and non‐linear equilibrium in the dynamic process.     

Heat Transfer during Microwave-Assisted Desorption of Water Vapor from Zeolite Packed Bed

This study attempted to quantify the effect of microwave-assisted desorption of water vapor from a zeolite packed bed. Specifically, an experiment was carried out comparing water vapor desorption using hot air and microwave heating. In the experiment, the temperature in the zeolite packed bed and humidity at the inlet and outlet of the adsorption column were measured.Then, the heat transfer behavior was quantified by calculating the heat balance of a zeolite packed bed, and the effect of microwave irradiation was examined. The results showed that microwave heating is effective for desorption at the beginning.     

Gaseous Pollutant Removal by a Single Bed Cyclic Adsorber with Synchronous Thermal Contact

Abstract

A single fixed bed pollutant adsorber can be operated cyclically by synchronizing the change of the direction of the gaseous flow with the change of the temperature in the bed. The pollutant is adsorbed at a temperature lower than that at which it is desorbed. The desorbed pollutant is then burned and disposed of.

Two operational schemes are presented for such a system. Effects of several parameters on the adsorber performance are studied through computer simulation. The results of this study can serve as a guideline in designing such a single bed adsorber system.