Insights into adsorption separation of N2/O2 mixture on FAU zeolites under plateau special conditions: A molecular simulation study.

• Binary adsorption of N 2 and O 2 on FAU zeolites at plateau conditions is obtained. • Water interacting with zeolites via hydrogen bond competes with N 2 and O 2 adsorption. • Effect of water content is greater than that of temperature change on air separation. • Trade-off between N 2 /O 2 selectivity and performance stability is addressed. • X zeolite with Si/Al close to 1.5 is recommended for PSA O 2 production in plateau. Adsorption thermodynamics of N 2 and O 2 on faujasite (FAU) zeolites with different Si/Al molar ratios under plateau conditions of wide ranges of temperature and humidity for pressure swing adsorption (PSA) oxygen production were studied based on validated molecular simulations. Binary adsorption isotherms and N 2 /O 2 selectivity on each adsorbent were obtained. The results suggest that dehydrated feed air with very low dew point of 213 K could still lead to ~10 wt% water adsorption capacity in FAU zeolites. The effect of water content was larger than that of temperature change on N 2 /O 2 separation performance, causing reductions in N 2 /O 2 selectivity of 50.9% and affinities of 15.6% and 10.6% for N 2 and O 2 at 238 K, and those of 45.7%, 13.7% and 11.1% at 298 K on FAU-1.1, respectively. The strong interaction of water with zeolites via hydrogen bond was shown to decrease the pore volume by 25.61%, occupy the cationic sites, and thermodynamically form competitive adsorption over N 2 and O 2. The increase in Si/Al molar ratio suppressed the negative impact of water and temperature change but sacrificed the N 2 /O 2 selectivity. To reach an optimal balance between the air separation performance and the adsorbent robustness, X zeolites with Si/Al molar ratio close to 1.5 would be recommended for PSA O 2 production under the plateau special condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]