Adsorption of CO, CO2,
and N2 gas on a CuCl/boehmite
is studied in static and dynamic experiments to separate CO from blast
furnace gas (BFG). The adsorption isotherms of CO, CO2,
and N2 were measured at 20–60 °C. Much more
CO than CO2 and N2 was adsorbed within a given
temperature range. The adsorption isotherms of CO display a hysteresis
loop and leaping phenomenon. The dual-site Langmuir–Freundlich
model was chosen to express the adsorption equilibrium of CO. This
isotherm model was successfully achieved to describe the equilibrium
data of CO. To express the isotherm of CO2 and N2, the Langmuir–Freundlich model was applied. Also, breakthrough
experiments were performed at 25, 40, and 55 °C with 7 bar and
1 L min–1 (25 °C, 1 bar) feed flow rate using
simulated BFG (CO/CO2/N2 = 20:20:60 mol %).
Within a given temperature range, the experiment results showed that
CO has longer breakthrough time than CO2 and N2. CO2 and N2 also showed the roll-up phenomenon
within the temperature range tested. To predict the breakthrough curve
of the simulated BFG, a one-dimensional, nonisothermal model was formulated.
The pseudo-second-order model was selected for CO adsorption kinetics,
and the pseudo-first-order model was chosen for CO2 and
N2. This model successfully expressed the experimental
data. This study widened the understanding of the static and dynamic
adsorption characteristics of simulated BFG on the CuCl/boehmite adsorbent
within the considered temperature and pressure range. The results
may guide future work, especially to find a feasible pressure swing
adsorption process to obtain high-purity CO from BFG.