A post-combustion process capable of separating CO2 from fluegas at one-third the cost of alternative separation processes has been developed by Svante Inc (Formerly Inventys Thermal Technologies, Inc.) (Burnaby, B.C., Canada; www.svanteinc.com).
Tradenamed VeloxoTherm (VX), the patented process is now being tested together with a consortium of industrial partners — Mast Carbon International, BP, Suncor Energy Services and Doosan Babcock Energy — in a $1.9-million project funded by Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC; Ottawa).
VX is an intensified temperature-swing adsorption (TSA) process that features structured, proprietary adsorbers (photo) instead of beaded adsorbents used in conventional packed-bed TSA processes. As a result, VX delivers enhanced heat and mass transfer at significantly lower pressure drop, says Darryl Wolanski, vice president of business development at Svante.
“The adsorption kinetics of the VX process is very fast — on the order of minutes to complete an entire adsorption-regeneration cycle, explains Wolanski. And because the regeneration temperature is lower than that required by conventional amine-based…
