Pilot-scale multistage membrane process for the separation of CO2 from LNG-fired flue gas

In this study, a multistage pilot-scale membrane plant was constructed and operated for the separation of CO2 from Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)-fired boiler flue gas of 1000 Nm3/day. The target purity and recovery of CO2 were 99 vol.% and 90%, respectively. For this purpose, asymmetric polyethersulfone (PES) hollow fibers membranes has been developed in our previous work and has evaluated the effects of operating pressure and feed concentration of CO2 on separation performance. The operating and permeation data obtained were also analyzed in relation with the numerical simulation data using countercurrent flow model. Based on these results, in this study, four-staged membrane process including dehumidification process has been designed, installed, and operated to demonstrate the feasibility of multistage membrane systems for removing CO2 from flue gases. The operation results using this plant were compared to the numerical simulation results on multistage membrane process. The experimental results matched well with the numerical simulation data. The concentration and the recovery of CO2 in the permeate stream of final stage were ranged from 95-99 vol.% and 70-95%, respectively, depending on the operating conditions. This study demonstrated the applicability of the membrane-based pilot plant for CO2 recovery from flue gas. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.