A Regenerable Solid Amine CO ₂ Concentrator for Space Station

A regenerable solid amine CO₂ control system, which employs water vapor for desorption, is being developed for potential use on long duration space missions. During cyclic operation, CO₂ is first absorbed from the cabin atmosphere onto the granular amine. Steam is then used to heat the solid amine bed and desorb the CO₂. This paper describes the solid amine system operation and application to the Shuttle Orbiter, Manned Space Platform (MSP) and Space Operations Center (SOC). The importance and interplay of system performance parameters are presented together with supporting data and design characteristics.