Desorption of propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate from activated carbon in supercritical CO2: Measurement and predictive modeling

Abstract

The desorption behavior of propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate (PGMEA), which is a volatile organic compound (VOC) used in semiconductor manufacturing, from activated carbon (AC) was experimentally and theoretically studied over a wide range of supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) conditions at T=(313 K to 353 K) and P=(10.0 MPa to 20.0 MPa) for the design of AC regeneration processes using scCO2. The experimental results reveal that the desorption ratio of PGMEA depended on the density of CO2, and is affected by its chemical structure and diffusivity of the VOC. A kinetic model based on the material balances of the VOC in the bulk phase and adsorption equilibria in the adsorbed phase described by the Dubinin–Astakhov equation was newly proposed to predict the desorption behavior. The model successfully predicted the desorption behavior using parameters determined from adsorption equilibrium and kinetic measurements of PGMEA on AC in scCO2.