Computational Fluid Dynamic Modeling and Experimental Validation of Adsorption-Based CO₂ Separation From Flue Gas Using Porous Activated Carbon

Both experimental and numerical investigations were performed to examine the impact of vapor on the dynamic adsorption of CO₂ in a horizontal fixed column filled with a novel activated carbon material. Experiments were conducted to examine how vapor impacts the CO₂ adsorption capacity of the newly developed activated carbon utilizing a DVS machine. Dynamic measurements of the separation of CO₂ from CO₂/N₂ mixtures were conducted under room temperature and atmospheric pressure conditions using a breakthrough experiment. The data obtained from these experiments were then used to validate the numerical model. A parametric numerical study was carried out to investigate the effects of the flow rate, gas temperature, and bed humidity on the CO₂ uptake. Results obtained from dynamic vapor sorption (DVS) testing indicate the presence of a constrained adsorption force within the initial monolayer, a characteristic feature reminiscent of a type V isotherm. The numerical findings disclose that the adsorption process efficiency of the synthesized adsorbent is approximately 89%. A 20% increase in the flow rate leads to a 17% decrease in the breakthrough time, and a 20% increase in bed humidity results in an 8% decrease in the breakthrough time due to limited vapor adsorption by the material.