(733c) Rate-Based Modeling of CO2 Absorption and Desorption Into Aqueous Monoethanolamine Solutions

Nineteen CO₂/monoethanolamine (MEA) absorption and desorption data sets from recent pilot plant studies at the University of Kaiserslautern[i] have been simulated with Aspen Plus. Simulations were performed using both rigorous rate - based calculations and the traditional equilibrium – stage approach. Rate - based results have been generated for several mass transfer/interfacial area correlations available in the open literature. Key performance measurements, including CO₂ removal efficiency in the absorber, temperature and CO₂ concentration profiles in the absorber and the desorber, and the desorber reboiler duty, are then compared to experiment.  We have found that the quality of the rate ‑ based results is strongly tied to the choice of the underlying mass transfer/interfacial area correlations selected for use in the simulation. In contrast, the equilibrium-stage model fails to reliably predict these key performance variables.