Volatile organic compounds absorption in a structured packing fed with waste oils: Experimental and modeling assessments

• Published in: Chemical engineering science 2021-07, Vol.238, p.116598, Article 116598
• Main Authors: Lhuissier, Margaux, Couvert, Annabelle, Kane, Abdoulaye, Amrane, Abdeltif, Audic, Jean-Luc, Biard, Pierre-François
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Absorption; Chemical Sciences; Mass transfer; Non-aqueous phase liquid; Structured packing; Volatile organic compounds; Waste oils
• ISSN: 0009-2509; 1873-4405
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ces.2021.116598

[Display omitted] •Absorption efficiencies of 7 VOCs were measured in a 1 m height structured packing.•Lubricant and transformer waste oils were investigated.•Removal efficiencies up to 80–90% were measured for hydrophobic VOCs in transformer oil.•Overall mass transfer coefficients were deconvoluted to determine local coefficients.•The Song-Seibert-Rochelle models fairly predicted the influence of the viscosity on mass-transfer. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) having different polarities were absorbed in two viscous waste oils (a transformer oil and a lubricant, whose viscosities are equal to 19 mPa s and 79 mPa s, respectively) in a structured packing (1 m height) operated at counter-current. A synthetic hydrophobic solvent (PDMS 20, a silicone oil) and water were also used as reference solvents. Removal efficiencies of hydrophobic VOCs in silicone and transformer oils up to 80–90% were measured. Nonetheless, owing to a higher viscosity, the removal efficiencies in the lubricant were significantly lower. A deconvolution procedure, based on the Higbie penetration theory, was developed to deduce the local mass transfer coefficients (kL and kG) from KLa° values. These local coefficients were compared to the predictions of the models of Billet-Schultes (BS) and Song-Seibert-Rochelle (SSR), allowing to conclude that the SSR model better addresses the influence of the viscosity on KLa° than the BS model.