Evaluation of Pd/k Medium Preparations for the Thermal Cycling Absorption Process Using Van Deemter Curves

The thermal cycling absorption process utilizes the isotopic selectivity of palladium hydrogenation to separate hydrogen isotopes. To test the effects of particle size and column diameter on process efficiency as measured using the height equivalent to a theoretical plate, medium preparations were tested over a range of superficial velocities from 0.5 to 7 cm/s and using sieved and non-sieved 60 wt% Pd on k media in three tubing choices; 0.25, 0.375, and 0.5 in. After fitting results to van Deemter curves, a positive correlation with particle size and a weak negative correlation with column diameter was observed. This effect was driven in both cases by changes in eddy diffusion and resistance to mass transfer, with minimal change to the diffusion term of the equation.