Molecular Sieve Desiccant Bead Question

[markem]

Originally Posted by Delta Adsorbents

Hello,
Did you ever get the info you need on Molecular Sieve Desiccant? I have specs for you and let me know if you have any questions. http://www.deltaadsorbents.com/msds.html Customerservice@delataadsorbents.com

He is actually looking for information relative to holding a specific humidity +/- a small percent. So he needs a material that will both absorb when the RH is above the set point and smoothly release when the RH is below the set point. From your material, it appears that your products are absorption only. The process of regeneration appears to be the process for removing the water from the bead, which indicates to me that it locks what it has absorbed and so will have a limit/lifetime. Of course, I may be misinterpreted this statement from the 3A page:

3A Molecular Sieve regenerated and reused. To regenerate the sieve you need to remove the adsorbed moisture and other materials. To regenerate 3A Molecular Sieve heat to 250℃.

The application (humidity control for cigars) does not lend itself to periodically raising the temperatures to 250*C. Still, I really like your product and your MSDS is excellent!

[shilala]

Originally Posted by markem

He is actually looking for information relative to holding a specific humidity +/- a small percent. So he needs a material that will both absorb when the RH is above the set point and smoothly release when the RH is below the set point. From your material, it appears that your products are absorption only. The process of regeneration appears to be the process for removing the water from the bead, which indicates to me that it locks what it has absorbed and so will have a limit/lifetime. Of course, I may be misinterpreted this statement from the 3A page:

3A Molecular Sieve regenerated and reused. To regenerate the sieve you need to remove the adsorbed moisture and other materials. To regenerate 3A Molecular Sieve heat to 250℃.

The application (humidity control for cigars) does not lend itself to periodically raising the temperatures to 250*C. Still, I really like your product and your MSDS is excellent!

Mark, most curves simply show adsorption, because that's how/why the material is being sold and purposed.
When they're talking regeneration here, they're speaking of regeneration after using it in a specific manufacturing process, such as gathering ammonia from air, or any of a host of items, beit chlorine, argon, whatever.
When used in process piping inside air driers/scavengers, it can be "cleaned" or "made new" by steam cleaning it, then drying it via vacuum. It saves money.
(Molecular Sieve is also special in that it works at very high temperatures, over 1000 degrees in process piping. The steam part is key to "cleanning" it.)

Desiccant manufacturers/salesmen aren't privy to using dessicants the way we do in humidors, nor would they want to. It's not the purpose for which they manufacture and sell the stuff, and none of their concern. I know that because I asked, and a number of people in the business took interest in my trials when I developed HCM beads. They shared a lot of useful information with me as I traded useful information with them.
Clearly I'm not saying that none of them could possibly know, I only talked to a lot, not every. But none that I spoke to had a clue and I spent hours upon hours on the phone.

Regardless, a person can easily find these things out by purchasing a number of different dessicants and testing them. It just takes lots of time and money, but it's big time geek fun.