Modeling and simulation of sour gas membrane-absorption system: Influence of operational parameters on species removal

Membrane-based gas separation process is an effective method for separation of species from gas mixtures. Combination of membrane process with other separation methods such as absorption is an appropriate method for gas separation. One of applications of hybrid systems of membrane–absorption is sour gas sweetening. In this paper, the hollow fiber membrane contactor and amine solution are used for separation of CO2 and H2S from CO2/H2S/CH4 gas mixture. Sour gas and amine solution enter the shell and fiber respectively. CO2 and H2S react with the amine solution. Reaction mechanism and equations for three phases of gas, liquid, and membrane are needed for modeling of this system. MATLAB software is used for simulation. The results show that concentrations of CO2 and H2S decrease in the beginning of the fiber. Liquid phase is controlling phase. Furthermore, pressure increase has a positive effect on separation.