Chemical Engineering & Technology, Vol.33, No.10, 1679-1686, 2010
Adsorption Characteristics of Methanol in Activated Carbon Impregnated with Lithium Chloride
The amount of methanol adsorbed in composite sorbents made of activated carbon impregnated with two different mass fractions of LiCl were assessed at selected temperatures and pressures. The adsorbed amounts, temperature, and pressure were well correlated with a Langmuir-type equation that had the same set of coefficients for different isotherms and isobars. However, sorption hysteresis was observed in the composite sorbent and the main practical implication of this phenomenon was the increase of the regeneration temperature necessary to desorb a certain amount of methanol. The specific cooling capacity and the coefficient of performance of the studied adsorbents were calculated, and it was found that the sorbent with 21.3 wt% of LiCl had specific cooling capacities 11% to 31% higher than those obtained with the untreated activated carbon, when the regeneration temperature was 388 K. The heat sink temperature was 303 K, and the evaporation temperature ranged between 263 and 283 K. However, at the same operation conditions, the coefficient of performance of both sorbents was similar.