Adsorption with regeneration is a desirable means to control the emissions of organic vapors such as hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from air streams as it allows for capture, recovery and reuse of those VOCs/HAPS. Integration of activated-carbon fiber-cloth (ACFC) adsorbent with microwave regeneration provides promise as a new adsorption/regeneration technology. This research investigates the feasibility of using microwaves to regenerate ACFC as part of a process for capture and recovery of organic vapors from gas streams.

The bench-scale fixed-bed microwave-swing adsorption (MSA) system was built and tested for adsorption of water vapor, methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) and tetrachloroethylene (PERC) from an airstream and then recovery of those vapors with microwave regeneration. The MSA system successfully adsorbed organic vapor from the airstreams, allowed for rapid regeneration of the ACFC cartridge, and recovered the water and organic vapors as liquids.

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This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0504385. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation (NSF).