Mass transport correlation for CO2 absorption in aqueous monoethanolamine in a continuous film contactor

CO2 absorption in monoethanolamine for the case of counter current gas–liquid flow in a continuous film contactor has been experimentally reported. Attempt has been made to develop an empirical correlation capable of capturing the non-uniformity of liquid flow to estimate the mass transfer effect. The correlation for the gas phase mass transfer coefficient in terms of dimensionless group is represented as:ShG=0.0387ReG0.66ReL0.115ScG0.5It was observed that the mass transfer rate strongly depends on gas and liquid flow rates. The proposed relationship gives a simple and direct method of incorporating the enhancement in mass transfer rate due to wavy liquid film. The mean deviation in the ShG calculated is about 3.9% of the ShG deduced from the experimental measurements. The study therefore provides test data and a correlation for the mass transfer process that is validated against extensive experimental data.