Refine Your Search

Search Results

Technical Paper

Membrane Technology for Carbon Dioxide Separation in Life Support Systems

1994-06-01
941339
Future manned space missions and space stations require almost completely closed ECLSS-loops. One important problem is the separation and concentration of CO2 from cabin air and the subsequent recovery of oxygen. A complete CO2-processing system has been developed at Dornier consisting of a CO2-separation and concentration unit (Solid Amine Water Desorption system - SAWD), a catalytic CO2-methanation reactor (Sabatier) and a process water electrolyzer for final oxygen and hydrogen recovery [1]. The current work intends to develop an appropriate membrane-based process as an alternative to the SAWD-process, in order to reduce energy consumption, volume and weight and to provide continuous operation. An extended screening of commercially available solution-diffusion membranes has been performed with the result that the polymers cannot meet the requirements for the advantageous replacement of the SAWD-system [2] [3].
X