A Thin Film Liquid Sorbent Reactor for CO2 Scrubbing Aboard Spacecraft

Date

2020-07-31

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

2020 International Conference on Environmental Systems

Abstract

For decades, direct contact liquid-gas CO2 sorbent beds have functioned successfully aboard confined crewed vehicles (i.e., submarines). Despite the unique challenges of microgravity fluids management, such approaches also offer attractive benefits for spacecraft air quality control. In a recent ISS technology demonstration experiment (CSELS—Capillary Sorbent), two 16-parallel open capillary channel contactors plumbed in series demonstrated passive ‘thin film’ control, modeling both absorption and desorption functions for a potential low-gravity CO2 scrubbing system for spacecraft. The open wedge-shaped channels mimic terrestrial falling film reactors by exploiting capillary pressure gradients instead of gravity. In this paper, we highlight the fluid mechanics of the process with and without the effects of CO2 absorption across the surface. The dramatic changes in fluid properties due to CO2 absorption in the contactor and temperature rise in the degasser are addressed via approximate analytic and numerical solutions to the species, energy, and momentum transport equations. We identify the limits of operation, stability, and transients for systems as functions of wedge geometry and working fluid thermo-physical properties. Analytical solutions are found that may be applied to systems of n-parallel channels. The analytical approach serves as the building blocks for massively parallel systems requiring large surface areas to achieve the desired performance.

Description

Samuel Mohler, Portland State University, USA
Mark Weislogel, Portland State University, USA
ICES302: Physio-chemical Life Support- Air Revitalization Systems -Technology and Process Development
The proceedings for the 2020 International Conference on Environmental Systems were published from July 31, 2020. The technical papers were not presented in person due to the inability to hold the event as scheduled in Lisbon, Portugal because of the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Keywords

Capillary, Air Scrubbing, CO2, Sorbent, ISS, Thin Film, Spacecraft, Analysis, Technology Demonstration Modeling

Citation