Bench Scale Carbon Dioxide Capture Educational Unit Operations Pilot Plant

Introduction

The Carbon Dioxide Capture Educational Unit Operations Pilot Plant is a bench-scale laboratory system designed for university engineering departments. It simulates the industrial processes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) separation, adsorption, and gas purification. By utilizing a multi-tower system to process gas mixtures, this unit provides students with hands-on experience in gas-solid contact, fluid dynamics, and thermodynamics, bridging the gap between theoretical classroom concepts and practical engineering applications.

To ensure this system aligns with specific institutional curricula and research directions, LABPARK offers customizable options. Both hardware configurations (such as reactor dimensions, sensor ranges, and piping layouts) and software control interfaces can be tailored to meet unique academic and laboratory requirements.

Key Pedagogical Features and System Advantages

• Industrial Process Simulation: Demonstrates the separation of nitrogen/carbon dioxide gas mixtures, enabling students to achieve product concentrations of ≥90% CO₂ and study industrial carbon capture techniques.
• Multi-Tower Adsorption Configuration: Features a four-tower separation setup, allowing the study of continuous cyclical operations, pressure swing adsorption (PSA), and temperature swing adsorption (TSA).
• Flexible Adsorbent Activation: Supports dual-method activation via vacuum pumping and high-temperature (100–300°C) inert gas purging to demonstrate thermal and pressure regeneration principles.
• Intelligent Open Control System: Utilizes a modular electrical control system integrating 32-channel signal monitoring and open-source programmable adjustments for practical process control training.
• Precise Analytical Instrumentation: Equipped with multi-range mass flow controllers and dedicated N₂/CO₂ gas concentration analyzers for real-time monitoring and data collection.
• Robust and Mobile Design: Constructed with industrial-grade stainless steel pipelines and a durable, mobile aluminum alloy frame with lockable casters, facilitating easy relocation and long-term durability in busy teaching laboratories.

Detail & Parts

Technical Specifications

Curriculum Mapping and Experimental Modules

The experimental modules of this pilot plant correspond to core concepts in chemical, environmental, and process engineering curricula.

Alignment with Academic Curricula and Classic Textbooks

This pilot plant is designed to support coursework in Chemical Engineering, Environmental Engineering, and Energy Technology. The physical processes demonstrated by the equipment align directly with standard unit operations described in major engineering textbooks:

• Unit Operations of Chemical Engineering: The pilot plant provides a concrete demonstration of gas adsorption equilibria, mass transfer coefficients, and the operation of packed beds. Students can observe how change in pressure, temperature, and feed flow rate alters the shape of breakthrough curves and the overall efficiency of the mass transfer zone.
• Transport Processes and Unit Operations: The equipment serves as a physical model for studying molecular diffusion in gases, mass transfer across phases, and convective transport phenomena within porous media under varying temperature and pressure profiles.
• Chemical Engineering Design: By analyzing the four-tower configuration, process piping, sensor placement, and control loops, students gain practical insight into process design, instrumentation, piping layout, and system safety parameters.

To accommodate specialized research projects or specific departmental teaching methodologies, both the hardware architecture and software control algorithms of this educational pilot plant can be customized. This ensures the equipment integrates into existing laboratory spaces and aligns with specific course syllabi.

About LABPARK

LABPARK has dedicated over 20 years to serving higher education institutions worldwide, providing high-quality engineering training equipment and pilot-scale systems. We focus on six core academic and research fields: Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology, Food Engineering, Pharmaceutical Engineering, and Environmental Engineering.

Supported by a production and research base spanning 4.9 hectares (49,000 square meters), LABPARK holds 209 technical patents. To date, we have partnered with more than 289 universities and colleges globally, delivering robust, curriculum-aligned educational solutions that prepare the next generation of engineers for industrial challenges.

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