DEPARTMENT OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA

ECHE 430

Homework #1

Due date: 8/31/2015

The numbers in parentheses next to each problem are point values for that problem.
1. (5) Make a list of the 5 most important things you learned from chapter 1 of your textbook
a. ra is the number mols A reacting per unit time per unit volume
b. Rate laws do not depend on type of reactor used
c. The main types of industrial reactors are Batch, CSTR, PFR, and PBR
d. Characteristics of the kinetic rate law (ie definition, function of reactant properties and
conditions, etc)
e. Mole balances in common forms for common reactors (table S.1!)
2. (5) Fogler P1-3b
a. Creative thinking is developing new and useful solutions to existing problems. I attempt to
increase my creative thinking skills by recording both ideas and questions that I have so I
can explore them further. I also try to read a lot of different material from a lot of different
sources like textbooks, magazines, newspapers, etc to see what is happening in the world
and what kind of things can cross-link between fields. I also try to work independently first
to develop my own novel solutions to problems before meeting with a team or group to
compare methods and results. I also like to take the time to relax and enjoy music,
photography, and reading to unwind and contemplate problems in a casual stress-less
environment.
3. (5) Make a list of the 5 most important things you learned from chapter 2 of your textbook
a. For irreversible reactions, the maximum conversion is 1, for reversible reactions the
maximum conversion is the equilibrium conversion.
b. Rectors can be combined in series to increase conversion and efficiency, with total series
volume often being less than single reactor volume.
c. PFRs are often modeled by CSTRs in series
d. Various models of conversion equations for flow and batch systems.
e. Differential and integral forms of the reactor design equations in terms of conversion.
4. (5) Fogler P2-3
a. G/S: 5 GLO, use summaries and overviews to get a general idea of material, look at real
world examples
b. A/R: 5 ACT Interact with the material closely and frequently, review for exams with ICGs
c. Vis/Verb: 9 VIS study examples and pictures of real life processes and reactors, utilize
graphs, charts, and figures
d. Sen/Int:1 INT Relate problems to real world applications, use trial and error, what if
analysis.

5. (5) Make a list of the 5 most important things you learned from chapter 3 of your textbook
a. The order of a reaction is the sum of the exponents to which the concentrations are raised
in the kinetic rate law.
b. Elementary reactions have rate laws defined by concentrations raised to the power of their
stoichiometric coefficient, non elementary reactions do not follow this pattern, but we
typically assume reactions do since it is a simple and straightforward starting point.
c. The quantity k is the specific reaction rate or the rate constant and is almost always
strongly dependent on temperature.
d. The Arrhenius equation can be used to model the temperature behavior of most reaction
rate constants under normal conditions.
e. If specific reaction rate at a given temperature is known along with the activation energy
we can find the reaction rate at any temp via equation S3-5
6. (10) Fogler P3-8
a. See attachments
7. (15) Fogler P3-12
a. See attachments
8. (20) An aqueous ester hydrolysis reaction, ester + water acid + alcohol, has a rate constant k
= 0.1 min-1 and an equilibrium constant of 5 (notice that the equilibrium constant is unit less and
that the forward rate constant includes the concentration of water which is large).
a) (6) Starting with Cester,0 = 0.25 mole/liter, and Cacid,0 = Calcohol,0 = 0, what is the equilibrium
concentration?
b) (6) What is the reverse rate constant in the above reaction?
c) (8) Find CA(t), CB(t), and CC(t) in a batch reactor for these initial conditions.
a. see attachments
9. (10) Sterilization is a batch process by which bacteria and molds in food are killed by heat
treatment. A can of vegetables that originally contained 20,000 viable spores has 100 spores
remaining after heating for 10 min at 250 F. Assuming first-order kinetics, how long must this can
be heated at this temperature to reduce the probability of having a single spore to an average of 1
in 1 million cans?
a. attached
10. (20) We can obtain 40% conversion in an irreversible reaction which obeys first-order kinetics in a
batch reactor at 70 C with a reaction time of 20 min. However, for a commercial process we will
need 95% conversion in a CSTR.
a) (6) What must be the ?
b) (7) We decide that the residence time in the CSTR must be no more than 30 min to develop an
economical process. If the activation energy for the reaction is 15 kcal/mole, what reactor
temperature will we have to use?

c) (7) The equilibrium conversion in this reaction at 70 C is found to be 99.5%, so the

approximation of irreversibility is good at this temperature. Will reversibility be a problem at
the operating temperature if HR = +20 kcal/mole? If HR = -20 kcal/mole?