ABSTRACT
Vapor-liquid equilibrium (VLE) data for the binary systems tetrahydrofuran (THF) + acetic acid (AA) and THF + trichloroethylene (TCE) were measured under isobaric conditions using an ebulliometer. The boiling temperatures for the systems (THF + AA/THF + TCE) are reported for 13/15 compositions and five/six different pressures ranging from 50.2/60.0 to 101.1/101.3 kPa, respectively. The THF + AA system shows simple phase behavior with no azeotrope formation. The THF + TCE system does not exhibit azeotrope formation but seems to have a pinch point close to the pure end of TCE. The nonrandom two-liquid (NRTL) and universal quasichemical (UNIQUAC) activity coefficient models were used to accurately fit the binary (PTx) data. Both models were able to fit the binary VLE data satisfactorily. However, the NRTL model was found to be slightly better than UNIQUAC model in fitting the VLE data for both systems. The results can be used for designing liquid-liquid extraction and distillation processes involving mixtures of THF, AA, and TCE.
ABSTRACT
Formic acid (FA) is an interesting hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO) carrier that can be produced by the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) using renewable energy. The separation of FA from water is challenging due to the strong (cross)association of the components and the presence of a high boiling azeotrope. For the separation of dilute FA solutions, liquid-liquid extraction is preferred over conventional distillation because distilling large amounts of water is very energy-intensive. In this study, we use 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (2-MTHF) to extract FA from the CO2 electrolysis process, which typically contains <20 wt % of FA. Vapor-liquid equilibrium (VLE) data of the binary system 2-MTHF-FA and liquid-liquid equilibrium (LLE) data of the ternary system 2-MTHF-FA-water are obtained. Continuous extraction and distillation experiments are performed to test the extraction power and recovery of 2-MTHF from the extract. The VLE and LLE data are used to design a hybrid extraction and distillation process to produce a commercial grade product (85 wt % of FA). A detailed economic analysis of this hybrid extraction-distillation process is presented and compared with the existing FA separation methods. It is shown that 2-MTHF is a cost-effective solvent for FA extraction from dilute streams (<20 wt % FA).