Effects of desorbent flowrate on simulated moving bed process

Abstract

This article presents the effects of the desorbent flowrate (or m1) on simulated moving bed (SMB) process performance at constant m2, m3 and m4, where the m-values (m j ) are defined as the net flowrate ratios of the zone, j, to the solid flowrate. A complete m-plane analysis of SMB systems (ComPASS) has been developed that illustrates how the desorbent flowrate is determined within the complete m-plane (i.e., fluid-solid flowrate ratio plane) to enhance the SMB process performance. The effects of desorbent flowrate are presented numerically for linear/equilibrium and nonlinear/nonequilibrium SMB processes. The results of the studies using ComPASS show that for linear/equilibrium SMB process, it is desirable to determine the minimum desorbent flowrate (m1) within the complete separation region. For the nonlinear/nonequilibrium SMB process, the desorbent flowrate can be determined at the minimum value which maximizes the raffinate purity.