Adsorption and Electrothermal Desorption of Organic Vapors Using Activated Carbon Adsorbents With Novel Morphologies

Abstract

Novel morphologies of activated carbons such as monolith, beads and fiber cloth can effectively capture organic vapors from industrial sources. These adsorbent materials are also unique because they can undergo direct electrothermal regeneration to recover the adsorbed organic vapors for potential re-use. This investigation compares and contrasts the properties of these adsorbents when using electrothermal-swing adsorption. The adsorption systems consisted of an organic vapor generation system, an electrothermal-swing adsorption vessel, a gas detection unit, and a data acquisition and control system. The activated carbon monolith (ACM) had the lowest pressure drop, highest permeability, highest electrical resistivity and lowest cost as compared to the activated carbon beads (ACB) and the activated carbon fiber cloth (ACFC). ACB had the largest throughput ratio and lowest length of unused bed as compared to the other adsorbents. However, ACFC had the largest adsorption capacity for toluene when compared to ACM and ACB. ACFC was also faster to regenerate and had a larger concentration factor than ACM and ACB. These results describe relevant physical, electrical, adsorption and cost properties for specific morphologies of the adsorbents to more effectively capture and recover organic vapors from gas streams.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2006
Accession Number
ADA498617

Entities

People

  • David Ramírez
  • Deborah L. Thurston
  • Georges Grevillot
  • K. J. Hay
  • Lingai Luo
  • Mark J. Rood

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Ground and Sea Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acquisition
  • Adsorbents
  • Adsorption
  • Air Pollution
  • Barometric Pressure
  • Carbon Fibers
  • Chemical Reactions
  • Control Systems
  • Data Acquisition
  • Desorption
  • Detectors
  • Electrical Properties
  • Electrical Resistance
  • Energy
  • Flow Rate
  • Gas Flow
  • Mass Transfer

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Astronomy/Astrophysics
  • Geotechnical Engineering.