Energy efficiency in the multi-stage laser separation of¹³C by an elimination method

Abstract

Energy efficiency has been discussed in the multi-stage laser separation of¹³C in the ir laser photolysis of CF₃I. The comparison has been made between the two methods, i.e., the photolysis of¹³C molecules (ordinary method) and the photolysis of¹²C molecules (elimination method). The former recycles the photolyzed product after the regeneration of feed molecules, while the latter recycles the residue after the elimination of the photolyzed product. The analysis of the energy consumption using theoretical models has shown that the elimination method consumes more energy, but the difference is far less than expected; the overall energy consumption may reach the same level at a lower pressure according to our estimation which includes the factors of the quantum efficiency for the dissociation, the energy difference between the laser lines and the material loss for the regeneration. It may imply that the elimination method is more favored in a practical application because it is free from the regeneration procedure.