Regeneration of 3A Molecular Sieves, Conventional vs. Microwave Heating

摘要

A comparative study of the molecular sieves regeneration processes under conventional and microwave heating is presented. Experiments were carried out on 3A molecular sieves used for ethanol drying. The regeneration was realized under controlled conditions with a microwave device that allowed the process parameters variation: temperature, microwave power, pressure and regeneration time. Thus, the regeneration degree of the molecular sieves was correlated with the amount of energy consumed. The optimum working parameters were determined. The regeneration efficiency was compared with the conventional thermal process. The goal of the study was to point out the potential of microwave heating in thermal regeneration of molecular sieves used for bioethanol dehydration.