4. Reactive absorption of carbon dioxide: Modeling insights

Intensified processes where reaction and separation are simultaneously carried out in the same equipment represent an attractive option to substitute the traditional reaction-separation sequences. Reactive absorption is already applied in different processes at industrial scale, but its modeling still represents an open topic where researchers are contributing to improve the understanding of the phenomena involved. Aspen Plus, one of the most powerful process simulators available on the market, can be used to model such kind of complex operation, but the user must be aware of the applicability and the limitations of the correlations implemented. In the present chapter, a model for the reactive absorption of carbon dioxide in monoethanolamine is discussed and validated using Aspen Plus. A particular analysis is given for the definition of the number of segments used to describe the column packing. Often overlooked, this parameter has a primary importance for the model output.