Simulation of Vacuum Pressure Swing Adsorption processes to sequester CO2

Significance Statement

The purpose of this study is motivated from the question that “how to perform scale up designs of pressure swing adsorption (PSA) processes without any expertise through the real plant experiences?”

The answer to the question is that the scale up design can be done by using an accurate simulation model.

However, there had been no successful works on the scale up design track records by using the only simulation model because it had been impossible to determine the precise scale up bed size through the conventional simulation methods. To decide the actual adsorption bed size, a gas velocity within the bed must be perceived correctly because the gas velocity directly affects the contact time with adsorbents within the adsorption bed and the contact time has a strong influence on the performances such as purity and recovery of the pressure swing adsorption processes.

Because it is very difficult to calculate the correct gas velocity within adsorption beds through the conventional simulation methods without empirical experiences or tuning, generally the scale up designs have been carried out by using semi-empirical methods or scale up tuning factors. But this study does not use the scale up tuning or any knowhow accumulated from a few decade real plant experiences which only conventional pressure swing adsorption vendors and design companies have.

Therefore, this paper is very significant in introducing (1) the new dynamic simulation model of vacuum pressure swing adsorption (VPSA) processes involving the state of the art gas velocity equation leading to accurate prediction of transient behaviors and performances, and (2) a successful scale-up design case with the use of the VPSA simulation model.

The simulation model is well validated by comparing with three sets of laboratory-scale (about 0.5 Nm3h-1) experimental data and one set of pilot-scale (100 Nm3h-1) design data provided by a pressure swing adsorption design company. As a conclusion, the 200 times scale-up design through the new simulation model is successful. 

Development of Simulation Model for Vacuum Pressure Swing Adsorption Process To Sequester Carbon Dioxide from Coalbed Methane. Advances in Engineering

About the author

Daeho Ko received his PhD in Chemical Engineering under the supervision of Professor Il Moon at Yonsei University in Korea, and worked with Professor Biegler at Carnegie Mellon University in USA as a post-doctoral fellow for about three and a half year. Then he worked for Samsung SDI as a senior researcher more than three years, and has been working for GS E&C, the EPC Company in Korea, as a general manager since December 2008.

His work area is dynamic simulation and optimization for various chemical process designs. His target processes are cyclic adsorption processes such as pressure swing adsorption (PSA) and thermal swing adsorption (TSA), fuel cell systems, lithium ion batteries, etc. He has published 22 journal papers, and registered 11 patents.

He has received a Six Sigma Olympiad Achievement award at Samsung SDI for the contributions to the development of dynamic simulation model for lithium ion battery systems. Recently he performed dynamic simulation works for real plant designs and operations at GS E&C, and has been carrying out R&D project to develop the design technology of coalbed methane (CBM) purification processes. 

Journal Reference

Development of a Simulation Model for the Vacuum Pressure Swing Adsorption Process To Sequester Carbon Dioxide from Coalbed Methane

Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., 2016, 55 (4), pp 1013–1023.

Daeho Ko

Global Engineering Division of GS Engineering & Construction, Gran Seoul, 33, Jong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul 110-130, Korea

Abstract

Coalbed methane is a worthwhile potential energy source, because methane gas is eco-friendly and a huge amount of coalbed methane has been buried in the United States, China, Australia, etc. This paper introduces a new simulation model of a vacuum pressure swing adsorption process that has been widely used to purify unconventional gases such as coalbed methane and landfill gas. The developed mathematical model includes a novel interstitial gas velocity equation derived by using a mole balance concept and an overall mass balance equation. The model is verified by comparing with three sets of laboratory-scale (about 0.5 Nm3h–1) experimental data and one set of pilot-scale (100 Nm3h–1) design data. Because the differences between the simulation results and the data are reasonably small, one can conclude that the 200 times scale-up design through the new simulation model is successful.

Copyright © 2016 American Chemical Society

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