(359a) Exploiting Structured Bed Thermal Conductivity for Enhancing the Performance of Temperature Swing Adsorption Processes

It is well established that the major limitation of temperature swing adsorption processes is its inherent slow cooling times as consequence of the low effective thermal conductivity of adsorbent beds. As a result, current large scale TSA processes require the use of internal heat exchangers that render the design of these units both complex and costly. With the advent of new thermally conductive metal microfibrous adsorbent structures, such as those being developed by IntraMicron, the design of new and simpler TSA beds requiring only external jackets for heat exchanging becomes a possibility.

In this presentation, the role of both radial and axial thermal conductivity on the performance of TSA processes will be evaluated via 2D and 3D CFD models using the Comsol Multiphysics® platform. This study will also show the impact of two different packing configurations, namely, having the adsorbent particles trapped and intermixed within a metallic microfibrous media, or, having interlayers of the same media with pelletized ones. The latest results from this study will be presented.