Industrial-scale spiral-wound facilitated transport membrane modules for post-combustion CO2 capture: Development, investigation and optimization

Membrane separation technology is one of the most promising strategies for post-combustion CO2 capture. The high-performance membrane module is one of the most critical components in the CO2 capture membrane system. The spiral-wound module is a promising type for industrial application; however, most of the research remains in the laboratory. In this work, industrial-scale spiral-wound membrane modules containing facilitated transport membranes have been developed and investigated. Under given practical operating conditions, an apparent gas separation performance was defined as an indicator to study the effects of various feed conditions on membrane performance within the module. As a crucial process parameter, the operating pressure was considered a variable to investigate the module performance at a fixed feed-to-permeate pressure ratio, and techno-economic indicators were also studied. Furthermore, a multi-core module containing up to 14 membrane elements was designed based on the experimental results of the arrangement mode cases. This work could bridge the research gap between membrane development and membrane system engineering. It could also provide essential data for the industrial application of post-combustion CO2 capture.