(60v) Study of CO2 Absorption in Packed Columns Using Aveva Process Simulation

The process of industrial revolution and the advent of energy sources derived from the burning of fossil fuels have led to a considerable increase in the emission and concentration of carbon dioxide in atmosphere of the planet . Carbon dioxide is one of the main pollutants responsible for global warming and the greenhouse effect, and it also causes various problems for human health. Currently, strategies are being developed to reduce the emission and removal of this pollutant from combustion gases and biogas enrichment, with the aim of increasing its calorific power. In this context, the chemical absorption process is the most widely applied method for CO2 removal. The objective of this project is to perform steady-state and dynamic simulation of a CO2 absorption process in a packed column, using NaOH as the absorption solution, in order to evaluate the pollutant removal performance, evaluate the sensitivity of the process with the analyzed variables and propose an optimized design of the system using experimental data for validation. For the simulation, the commercial software AVEVA Process Simulation was used, as it integrates all phases of the life cycle of an industrial plant in the same environment, and it is a simulator that is poorly explored in the field of research. The studied process was conducted in an absorption column of 290 mm internal diameter and a useful height of 850 mm, under countercurrent regime with gas flow rates from 18 to 40 m³/h and liquid flow rates from 200 to 500 L/h. This work aims to evaluate the influence of gas and liquid flow rates and the type of packing on the absorption process through the removal efficiency and the average mass transfer coefficient (kga), being both parameters dependent of the inlet and outlet concentration of CO2. The dynamic simulation will analyze the behavior of the CO2 outlet concentration through open-loop and closed-loop disturbances. It should be emphasized that the project of the equipment proposed in this research project is unprecedented and essential contribution compared to other studies in this research area.