Silica-aluminas for carbon dioxide bulk removal from sour natural gas

Natural gas is obtained from reservoirs as mixture to be treated before the dispatching systems. Carbon dioxide is among the most common contaminants and when present in relevant amount, bulk removal operations have to be envisaged before final polishing. Applicability of silica-alumina and silica as adsorbents for carbon dioxide bulk removal from sour natural gas is discussed. In particular, influence of both chemical composition and textural properties on key separation features is reported. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.