Separation of CO2 from N2 mixture by membrane gas – solvent absorption process with enhancement effect of TiO2 and SiO2 nanoparticles

The aim of this paper is to study and evaluate various operational variables, including gas mixture flow rate, nanomaterial type and concentration and circulating absorbent solution flow rate by using a PTFE hollow fiber membrane contactor with a potassium carbonate solution containing titanium dioxide and silica nanomaterial as additives to separate carbon dioxide from CO2/N2 mixture. The results indicate that the CO2 removal efficiency at 0.5 wt.% titanium dioxide (50 nm), significantly increased from 38% to 70%, while absorption flux increased from 2.024×10-3 to 3.627×10-3 (mole /(m2. s)) at a fluid flow rate of 53 NL/MIN, fluid temperatures of 30°C, a gas stream rate of 300 NL/MIN, and 15% v/v inlet carbon dioxide content. Moreover, the dispersion stability of nanoparticles in Nano fluids was investigated using a UV-visible spectroscopy apparatus. Through the results obtained, it was found that when the concentration of nanoparticles of 0.2Wt.%, They are relatively stable in the solution, but this stability decreases when the concentration of 0.5 Wt.%, where the relative absorbance of the solution was recorded at a concentration of 0.2 Wt.% after one day about 88% SiO2 and 83% TiO2. At the same time, the result was 78% SiO2, and 75% TiO2 when the solution concentration was 0.5 Wt.%, and it was preserved.