Sliding Door Separation Unit for Direct Air Capture
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing gas separation technologies for direct air capture (DAC) face challenges in efficiently capturing CO2 from atmospheric air due to low CO2 concentration and the need for large volumes of air, with existing systems having high pressure drops, high thermal mass, and complex structural components that restrict flow and increase energy consumption.
Innovation Solution
A separation unit with a novel design featuring a pair of opposing sliding doors that seal cavities for gas adsorption and desorption, allowing for efficient gas flow through a large cross-sectional area with minimal structural components, reducing pressure drops and thermal mass, and enabling cyclic operation of multiple cavities for enhanced CO2 capture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of stationary object
If traditional gas separation structures with enclosed sorbent material are used, then CO2 capture function is achieved, but pressure drop increases and flow cross section decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The device divides the sorbent material into multiple distributed beds arranged in parallel flow paths rather than a single enclosed chamber. This segmentation allows air to flow through multiple simultaneous adsorption zones, increasing total flow cross section while maintaining effective CO2 capture capacity across the distributed sorbent beds.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a traditional vertical or single-path flow configuration to a multi-dimensional parallel flow architecture with multiple horizontal flow paths. This dimensional reorganization enables simultaneous gas flow through multiple sorbent beds, dramatically increasing the effective flow cross section without proportionally increasing device height or complexity.
2Reliability
If traditional enclosed chamber structures are used for adsorption-desorption cycling, then sealing during desorption is achieved, but thermal mass increases and structural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device employs dynamically movable doors that can be positioned to seal individual sorbent beds during desorption cycles. Rather than requiring complex multi-chamber enclosures, simple movable barriers selectively isolate the active bed from the atmosphere while leaving other beds open for continuous air flow and CO2 capture, thereby reducing overall structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system maintains continuous CO2 capture operation by allowing multiple sorbent beds to function simultaneously in different operational phases. While one bed undergoes desorption with its door sealed, other beds remain open and actively adsorbing CO2 from incoming air, ensuring uninterrupted carbon capture productivity across the entire device.
3Quantity of substance
If vacuum desorption is applied to remove CO2 from sorbent, then CO2 concentration increases, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device implements periodic switching between multiple sorbent beds, alternately exposing them to vacuum desorption and atmospheric adsorption. This rhythmic cycling allows the system to concentrate CO2 during vacuum phases while simultaneously capturing fresh CO2 during atmospheric phases, achieving high CO2 concentration output without requiring continuous high-energy vacuum operation across the entire system.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the pressure differential created during vacuum desorption of one bed to naturally drive atmospheric air flow through other beds during their adsorption phase. The vacuum pump serves multiple functions: concentrating CO2 from active beds and simultaneously creating the driving force for passive air flow through parallel beds, reducing the need for additional energy-intensive air pumping.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a reliable, efficient, and cost-effective gas separation process with reduced energy demand, increased CO2 uptake rates, and lower material intensity, enabling scalable and long-term operation for direct air capture applications.
Implementation Method 1
a gas adsorption structure (4) in said cavity through which said gas flow passes for adsorption of the component to be separated
Implementation Method 2
which can on the other hand appropriately seal the sorbent material from the ambient air during desorption and withstand sorbent material temperatures up to 130° C., mixtures of CO2, air, and water as vapor and liquid, as well as optionally, vacuum pressures down to 10 mbar(abs) or lower
Data Source
AI summary
Separation unit (1) for separating at least one gaseous component from a gas mixture, or arrangement of such separation units, wherein it has at least one circumferential wall element(s) (5), the circumferential wall element(s) defining an upstream opening (31) and an opposed downstream opening (32) of at least one cavity (3) containing at least one gas adsorption structure (4) for adsorbing the gaseous component under ambient pressure and/or temperature conditions, or an array of at least two such cavities (3). The separation unit (1) has a pair of opposing sliding doors (12) for sealing the openings of a cavity (3) and preferably allowing for evacuating a cavity (3), and the pair of opposing sliding doors (12) can be shifted in a direction essentially parallel to the plane of the respective sliding door (12) and to allow for flow through of gas mixture through the gas adsorption structure (4).