Fixed-Bed Microwave Swing Adsorption System for the Capture and Recovery of Organic Vapors

摘要

The emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOC) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) are serious environmental issues. Adsorption allows for capture, recovery and reuse of many of the VOCs and HAPS that are organic vapors. However, adsorbents need to be regenerated to remain effective adsorbents. Adsorbents are regenerated commercially using vacuum, hot air, or steam. Activated carbon fiber cloth (ACFC) is a novel polymeric adsorbent with unique adsorption and regeneration properties. ACFC is typically regenerated using steam or electrical resistive heating. Previous research reported several advantages of using microwaves compared to other conventional adsorbent regeneration techniques. However, the use of microwaves to regenerate ACFC has not been reported, possibly due to the novelty of the adsorbent and/or the lack of information about its dielectric properties. This research reports on the feasibility of using microwaves to regenerate ACFC. As such, a bench-scale adsorption/regeneration system was designed, built, and operated to complete experimental adsorption and microwave regeneration tests. The experimental results show that ACFC is an effective adsorbent for methyl-ethyl-ketone (MEK), the adsorbent heats rapidly by microwave energy causing effective regeneration of the adsorbent, and allows for recovery of the MEK as a liquid.