One of the best apparatus to study the kinetics of reaction between gas and liquid in the field of gas absorption is a Laminar Jet Absorber. This is because the interfacial area is known accurately and the physical absorption rates have been shown to agree with the penetration theory predictions. In this type of experiment, the operating variables, which include temperature, pressure, contact-time and composition, are fixed at a predetermined value. Then the value of the absorption rate of gas into liquid is measured. By repeating the experiments over a range of operating variables, the function dependency of the absorption rate is determined. By analyzing the dependency of the absorption rate on the operating conditions, the reaction mechanism, reaction-rate constants, and reaction-order can be understood. For example, the laminar jet absorber and our numerical absorption-rate/kinetics model was used to investigate the kinetics of CO2 into highly concentrated and loaded MEA solutions. This study introduced a new termolecular-kinetics model, which proved to be better than the previous published kinetics models for the CO2 reactions with MEA solutions.
Current research activities are as follows:
The actual physical and chemical properties of the system as a function of temperature, concentration, and loading will be used in the interpretation of the absorption data.
Research Consortium of International Test Centre for CO2 Capture Sponsored By:
SaskPower, EnCana, HTC Purenergy, E.ON|UK, Saudi Aramco, Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE), Alberta Energy Research Institute (AERI), RWEnpower, Babcock & Wilcox, Natural Resources Canada, and Saskatchewan Energy & Resources
Other support also provided by:
Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Western Economic Diversification Canada, Government of Saskatchewan, Alberta Research Council, Natural Resources Canada, University of Waterloo, and University of Regina.