Stripping of CO2 in Post-combustion Capture with Chemical Solvents: Intensification Potential of Hollow Fiber Membrane Contactors

The implementation of hollow fiber membrane contactors (HFMC) in the stripping of CO 2 within the PCC context was addressed in this paper. Two stripping techniques were studied by modelling and simulation: high and low temperature stripping. These processes where compared against the conventional CO 2 stripping process using packed columns. The latter was also modelled and simulated and good agreement between experimental data and model predictions was obtained. The stripping step is constituted by a whole set of unit operations thus making the modelling more difficult than that used for absorption. HFMC implementation for high temperature stripping is a promising technology, provided that membranes can resist high temperatures and are equally resistant to wetting. Composite membranes currently represent the best candidates. Low temperature stripping requires more energy if similar volumetric contactor reduction factors to those of high temperature stripping using HFMC are desired. It is worth noting that these results are based on the performance of a given packed column, i.e. IMPT-50 packing. Advancements in packed bed technology are also expected, thus the intensification potentials identified here may be affected.