(98d) CFD Modeling of High-Flux Plate-and-Frame Membrane Modules for Post-Combustion Carbon Capture

Carbon capture technologies have gained significant attention in recent years due to their potential to mitigate the impact of greenhouse gas emissions on the environment. Membrane-based separation processes offer several advantages over conventional separation processes, such as low energy consumption, compact size, and scalability, making them a preferred option for carbon capture applications. The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) previously developed an innovative rubbery thin film composite (TFC) membrane characterized with high CO₂ permeance, high CO₂/N₂ selectivity, stable performance in the presence of water vapor and non-aging behavior [1]. Upscaling the technology into stacked flat sheet configurations, necessitates insights about optimal operating conditions and geometrical features of the stack that can be elucidated by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models. High fidelity simulations have been proven a key technology for systematically studying the complex transport phenomena in membrane systems [2]. Module modeling has thus the potential to significantly increase the overall efficiency of the separation process and make the technology more economically competitive.

In this work, we initially focus on setting CFD simulations for a series of plate-and-frame membrane modules that enclose the developed rubbery TFC membranes to investigate how geometries of the membrane modules influence gas transport through the TFC membranes, delineate convective and diffusive mechanisms and determine the effect of various design parameters on its efficiency. The performance of the developed model is assessed using two metrics: the dependence of retentate recovery (fraction of the feed recovered as the retentate product) and the dimensionless feed flow rate. The latter two metrics can be used to assess the process energy requirements (operating costs) and the impact of the membrane area (capital costs), respectively. The simulations aim to drive the optimization and design of the plate and frame membrane stacks, and to create a generic computational framework that could be leveraged universally for membrane technology applications.

References

1. https://netl.doe.gov/sites/default/files/netl-file/22CM_PSC18_Zhu.pdf
2. Rivero J., Panagakos G., Lieber A., Hornbostel K., Hollow Fiber Membrane Contactors for Post-Combustion Carbon Capture: A Review of Modeling Approaches Membranes 2020, 10, 382

*This work is performed in support of the US Department of Energy’s Point Source Carbon Capture program.