CO2 absorbing capacity of MEA

Abstract

We describe the use of a gas bubbler apparatus in which the gas phase is bubbled into a fixed amount of absorbent under standard conditions as a uniform procedure for determining the absorption capacity of solvents. The method was systematically applied to determine the CO2 absorbing capacity of MEA (Ac) at several aqueous MEA (β) and gas-phase CO2 concentrations. Ac approached the nominal CO2 absorbing capacity of MEA (720 g CO2/kg MEA) at very low β levels, increasing from 447.9±18.1 to 581.3±32.3 g CO2/kg MEA as β was reduced from 30 to 2.5% (w/w). Ac did not depend on the CO2 concentration in the inlet gas stream as long as the gas stream did not include other amine sensitive components. During the bubbling tests the outlet CO2 concentration profiles exhibited a sigmoidal shape that could be described by an exponential equation characterized by an efficiency factor (a) and a form factor (n). Statistical analysis based on correlation analysis indicated that in all cases the experimental data fit the equation well when a was 6.1±0.35 and n was 2.5±0.12. The results of these experiments may be used to optimize scrubber designs for CO2 sequestration from fossil fuel derived flue gases.