Title: Process simulation of ammonia-based CO₂ capture and regeneration in packed column

Authors: Muhammad Asif; Woo-Seung Kim

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hanyang University, 17 Haengdang-dong, Seongdong-gu, Seoul 133-791, South Korea ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hanyang University, 55 Hanyangdaehak-ro Sangnok-gu Ansan, Kyeonggi-do, 426-791, South Korea

Abstract: Post-combustion CO₂ capture using aqueous ammonia offers advantages over the conventional amines solvent, including lack of corrosion, an enhanced CO₂ loading capacity and low energy input requirement for solvent regeneration. In this paper, an aqueous ammonia-based CO₂ absorption-desorption process integrated with washing column is modelled and simulated in Aspen Plus®. The predicted results agreed with published experimental results. The effect of performance parameters such as the ammonia concentration in lean solution, CO₂ fraction in the flue gas, inlet feed gas temperature, stripper operating temperature and pressure, lean solution temperature and flow rates of the flue gas, were investigated. The gas temperature showed trivial effect on CO₂ absorption efficiency; therefore the absorber column can be fed with hot flue gases, eliminating the need for cooling. The results show that the washing columns coupled at top of the absorber and stripper columns enabled the system to maintain ammonia slip within permissible level.

Keywords: aqueous ammonia; chemical absorption; CO2; carbon dioxide; carbon capture; global warming; post-combustion; process simulation; carbon regeneration; packed columns; absorption-desorption; washing columns; modelling; gas temperature; hot flue gases.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGW.2015.072657

International Journal of Global Warming, 2015 Vol.8 No.3, pp.401 - 415

Received: 26 Sep 2013
Accepted: 13 Apr 2014
Published online: 23 Oct 2015 *

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