Ionic liquids for post-combustion CO2 capture by physical absorption: Thermodynamic, kinetic and process analysis

The post-combustion CO2 physical absorption with ionic liquids (ILs) is studied in this work using a COSMO-based methodology that allows including ILs into Aspen Plus. Firstly, the performance of 8 ILs with different nature in the absorption and regeneration individual operations is evaluated in commercial packed columns at different temperature and pressure conditions adding thermodynamic, mass transfer kinetic and technical criteria to the IL selection. Secondly, both the absorption and regeneration are integrated in a complete CO2 capture process simulation. The interdependency of variables and their influence in the total operating cost (OPEX) is estimated. The total energy needed for this capture process is compared to homologue results presented in literature for other CO2 capture technologies. Finally, we provide a preliminary estimation of the capital cost (CAPEX) of the process for a pilot near to industrial scaled plant.