Mathematical modeling and validation of CO2 mass transfer in a membrane contactor using ionic liquids for pre-combustion CO2 capture.

Mass transfer and mathematical modelling of CO 2 absorption in a tubular membrane contactor using 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium Tricyanomethanide ([Bmim][TCM]) for pre-combustion CO 2 capture has been studied in this work. A 1D-model was developed based on resistance in series model and CO 2 material balance. The developed model was validated with the experimental data, and good agreement was observed between the simulated and experimental results. A new mass transfer resistance term is added to reflect the non-flat concentration profile in the liquid phase. Simulation results indicate that the liquid phase resistance contributes 67% and 44% to the total mass transfer resistance for non-wetted and wetted modes of membrane respectively. The resistance that occurred due to considering transport in liquid phase contributes 31 and 20% for non-wetted and wetted modes of membrane contactor respectively. CO 2 flux along the axial length of membrane contactor was modeled, giving the maxima at the gas outlet. The influences of operational constraints including liquid/gas flow rates, operation pressure/temperature, length of membrane contactor, and CO 2 concentration in feed gas were also inspected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]