NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF MASS TRANSFER IN GASLIQUID HOLLOW FIBER MEMBRANE CONTACTORS

Hollow fiber membrane contactors have attracted the attention of many researchers as a new means for gas separation. This study presents a numerical simulation using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) of momentum and mass transfer in a hollow fiber membrane contactor for laminar flow conditions. The velocity and concentration profiles of component A are obtained by resolution of the Navier-Stokes and convection-diffusion equations. The influence of various process parameters on mass transfer is investigated. The simulation results for the physical absorption of CO2 in water indicated that the removal rate of CO2 increased with increasing liquid velocity in the shell side. On the other hand, increasing temperature and gas velocity in the tube side seemed to have an opposite effect.