Pore Structure Alteration of a Carbon Molecular Sieve for the Separation of Hydrogen Sulfide from Methane by Adsorption

The equilibrium adsorption of H2S is substantially stronger than that of CH4 on carbons, including carbon molecular sieve (CMS). A carbon molecular sieve with a proper pore structure can provide a kinetic selectivity for H2S over CH4, thus further enhancing the overall selectivity (equilibrium plus kinetic) for H2S and providing the basis of natural gas desulfurization by adsorption. Kinetic selectivity requires a unique pore structure due to the small difference in the molecular dimensions of H2S and CH4 (~0.2 Å). Equilibrium and diffusion rate data for CH4 and H2S at 25°C have been measured in three commercial carbon molecular sieves: Bergbau Forschung CMS, Takeda CMS 3A and Takeda CMS 5A. The pores are either too small (in the two former carbons) or too large (in CMS 5A) for H2S/CH4 separation. Alterations to the pore structure either by controlled oxidation or carbon deposition by pyrolysis have been studied. Optimal results were obtained by pyrolysis of propylene on CMS 5A under the following conditions: 0.05 atm, 700°C, 5 min, weight gain of 0.67%. The resulting carbon molecular sieve retained the high equilibrium adsorption capacities while yielding a diffusion time constant ratio for H2S/CH4 of 8.2. This carbon is suitable for natural gas desulfurization by adsorption processes such as pressure swing adsorption. Temperature was the most important variable in pore structure alteration by carbon deposition. Under the optimal pyrolysis conditions, carbon was only deposited near the pore entrances.