Numerical study of turbulent gas flow and CO2 absorption in porous media

Chemical absorption of CO2 in Monoethnol Amine (MEA) solutions has been used extensively in removal of carbon dioxide from flue gas. The removal of CO2 by chemical absorption involves turbulent gas flow through porous packing material, physical absorption at the gas/liquid interface and chemical absorption in the liquid phase. In this study we have developed a two-dimensional model for simulating absorption of CO 2 using water based MEA. This model is used to study the distributions of gas velocity, pressure, CO2 and MEA concentration and temperature for various liquid/gas ratios and packing materials. The model is also used to verify the assumptions made in one-dimensional model such as plug flow and linear pressure. The results show that the distribution of velocity, CO 2 and MEA concentration vary substantially in axial direction for a large aspect ratio. The performance of various packing material is evaluated. The relationship between the liquid flow rate and CO2 absorption rate is obtained.