Diseño de una columna empacada en la recuperación de amoníaco: evaluación de dos tipos de empaque

Gas absorption is a mass transfer operation that involves separating components from a gaseous mixture by contacting them with a suitable liquid, typically performed in packed columns. In this study, a packed column was designed for the absorption of gaseous ammonia using water as a solvent, and two types of packing were evaluated: ceramic Raschig rings and metallic Hiflow rings. The use of Hiflow rings resulted in a 30.35% reduction in column diameter compared to Raschig rings. Furthermore, the total pressure drop of the gas-liquid system at 70% flooding was 17.81% lower for Hiflow rings (522.16 Pa/m)than for Raschig rings (615.16 Pa/m). The calculated convective mass transfer coefficients for both liquid and gas phases were also higher when using Hiflow rings compared to Raschig rings. Based on these findings, Hiflow rings are recommended for this mass transfer application due to the smaller column internal diameter and lower pressure drop obtained, as well as the higher mass transfer coefficients achieved with this packing type compared to Raschig rings