Patent ID: 8696792
Filing Date: 2014-04-15
Classification: B01D,C01B

Abstract:
1. A process for removing impurities from a gas, comprising: (a) contacting an impurity containing feed gas stream with a solid sorbent stream in a fluidized absorber zone under conditions sufficient to reduce an impurity content of the feed gas stream and increase impurity loading of the solid sorbent stream; (b) removing an impurity loaded solid sorbent stream from the absorber zone and transporting at least a portion of the impurity loaded solid sorbent stream to a first non-mechanical gas seal forming solids transfer zone, the first solids transfer zone being fluidly connected to a fluidized solids regenerator zone and adapted to transfer solids to the fluidized regenerator zone at a controllable flow rate in response to the flow of an aeration gas through the transfer zone; (c) transferring the impurity loaded solid sorbent stream from the first solids transfer zone to the fluidized solids regenerator zone and contacting the impurity loaded solid sorbent stream with a regenerator feed gas in the fluidized solids regenerator zone to thereby reduce the impurity content of the impurity loaded solid sorbent stream; (d) transferring the solid sorbent stream of reduced impurity content from the fluidized regenerator zone to a second non-mechanical gas seal forming solids transfer zone, the second solids transfer zone being fluidly connected to the regenerator and absorber zones and adapted to transfer the solid sorbent stream of reduced impurity content to the absorber zone at the same flow rate as the flow rate of the solid sorbent stream of reduced impurity into the second solids transfer zone; (e) transporting at least a portion of the impurity loaded solid sorbent stream removed from the fluidized absorber zone to a third non-mechanical gas seal forming solids transfer zone, the third solids transfer zone being fluidly connected for receiving the portion of the impurity loaded solid sorbent stream from a downstream portion of the fluidized absorber zone and for delivering the portion of the impurity loaded solid sorbent stream to an upstream portion of the fluidized absorber zone, the third solids transfer zone being adapted to transfer solids to the fluidized absorber zone at a controllable flow rate in response to the flow of an aeration gas through the transfer zone; (f) transferring the portion of the impurity loaded solid sorbent stream from the third solids transfer zone to the upstream portion of the fluidized absorber zone for contact with the impurity containing feed gas stream; and (g) recovering a purified gas stream from the absorber zone.