A recently built multi-purpose pilot plant for the investigations of (reactive) absorption processes is presented. It consists of two glass columns with an inner diameter of 0.1 m and 0.3 m. The plant can be used for fluid dynamic studies of packings and other internals as well as for absorption and desorption experiments. Above all, CO2 capturing by aqueous amine solutions should be examined. Validation experiments on fluid dynamics showed that the bigger column can be used for pressure drop measurements of dry and irrigated packings. Furthermore, the results of first absorption and desorption runs performed with the widely used solvent monoethanolamine give evidence that the plant is applicable for thorough experimentation.
