Description:
Reference #: 01469
The University of South Carolina is offering licensing opportunities for Extremely Large Pressure Swing Adsorption Processes for Flue Gas Treatment
Background:
Extremely large gas flow rates, like that associated with flue gas produced from a 550 MW coal fired power plant, can exceed 25,000,000 SLPM. Even larger flue gas flow rates can be produced from steel mills. The flue gas produced from these processes is at a pressure slightly above about 100 kPa and a temperature between ambient and 125 oC. However, an issue arises with these low-pressure flue gas streams when fed to a pressure swing adsorption (PSA) process. The issue is that the feed cannot be compressed very much because of the cost of compression.
Invention Description:
A unique vacuum swing adsorption process was invented that overcomes these pressures drop issues.
Potential Applications:
This invention solves the problem associated with excessive pressure drop in PSA beds treating extremely large gas flow rates, like that associated with flue gas produced from a 550 MW coal fired power plant, which can exceed 25,000,000 SLPM. Even larger flue gas flow rates can be produced from steel mills.
Advantages and Benefits:
This invention overcomes a huge problem associated with excessive pressure drop-in large-scale PSA processes that are fed at low pressures of around 1 atm. This pressure drop limit/issue does not exist for PSA processes that operate with a feed pressure well above atmospheric pressure, like from 80 psia to 800 psia, where the higher the better.