A kinetic theory based hydrodynamic model with experimentally determined sorption rates for reaction of CO2 with K2CO3 solid sorbent is used to design a compact circulating fluidized bed sorption-regeneration system for CO2 removal from flue gases. Because of high solids fluxes, the sorber does not require internal or external cooling. The output is verified by computing the granular temperatures, particle viscosities, dispersion, and mass transfer coefficients. These properties agree with reported measurement values except the radial dispersion coefficients, which are much higher due to the larger bed diameter. With the solid sorbent prepared according to published information, the CO2 removal percentage at the riser top is 69.16%. To improve the CO2 removal, an effort is needed to develop a better sorbent or to simply lower the inlet gas velocity to operate in a denser mode, leading to a larger system. Also, the effect of temperature rise on the removal efficiency is investigated. (C) 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 56: 2805-2824, 2010