Computational simulation of CO2 capture process in a fluidized-bed reactor

- A kinetic theory based hydrodynamic model is used to simulate CO2 capture process.
- Distributions of solid sorbents, temperature, and CO2 concentration fields are predicted.
- Reactor height is optimized based on increasing solid sorbents rate and water vapor content during different velocities.

A dry sorbent in a fluidized bed reactor system is nominated as an efficient method to remove CO2 from flue gases. In this study, a two-dimensional CFD simulation with the Euler-Euler two-phase fluid flow model incorporating the kinetic theory of solid particles is used to validate a specific reported experimental data. The non-uniform distribution of the solid-phase volume fraction and CO2 concentration is captured in the carbonation reactor. CO2 removal increases by decreasing dry gas flow and enhancing solid sorbent flux. Furthermore, it has an ascending-descending behavior including a maximum point by increase in water vapor content of the feed gas. The CFD model is also implemented to optimize the reactor height based on operating conditions. By using optimized volume fraction of water vapor in the feed gas and enhancing solid sorbent rate to a minimum required value, the reactor height can be decreased to improve the cost and system size condition.

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