Water Vapor Adsorption Capacity Loss of Molecular Sieves 4A, 5A, and 13X Resulting from Methanol and Heptane Exposure.

Zeolite-based molecular sieves are applied in industrial dehydration units for their high water uptake capacities and extremely low equilibrium pressure of water vapor. During their operational life, they tend to lose their water vapor adsorption capacity slowly. To optimize the usage of molecular sieves in dryer units, it is vital to understand the mechanism(s) leading to deactivation.