In situ determination of species distribution in alkanolamine- H2O - CO2 systems by Raman spectroscopy

Most of the CO2 post-combustion capture units under development for fossil-fuel based power plants rely on the use of alkanolamine aqueous solutions. The correct design of absorbing and regenerating sections of these processes require robust thermodynamic and kinetic models. This legitimates current research efforts in the field of the characterization of aqueous alkanolamine loaded solutions. In this study, the potentialities of Raman spectroscopy are investigated. The obtention of species distribution for MDEA loaded solutions at 40 °C is described. Numerical adjustments of thermodynamic parameters from spectral measurements for MEA and DEA is also performed. Compared to other classical analytical tools, a strong interest is shown for the analysis of tertiary amines solutions and potentially for kinetic measurements.