Dynamic simulation and parametric sensitivity study in reactive CO2 capture systems - A solvent comparison study

The parametric analysis showed that the inlet gas flow rate was the most influential factor determining the CO2 absorption level for both solvents. In following, the temperature of the liquid entering the column was also statistically important having strong impact on absorption. Surprisingly, the flow of the lean solvent wetting the column seems to have lower impact than the gas flow. Thus, increased solvent flow does not ensure respective enhancement of the CO2 absorption. Molarity is also very important as the quantity of amine in the solution determines the quantity of the captured CO2. In terms of reaction time towards disturbances, changes in liquid molar flow, liquid temperature and molarity seem to lead to higher reaction time until the system reaches a new steady state value (2-5 min). Finally, the results showed that there is a maximum capture level, beyond which the absorption cannot be further enhanced for specific conditions.