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FALL 1999
Consider the case study of a large petrochemical company, who’s Petroleum Production
and Refinery Division has been combusting the bottom residue from its crude oil vacuum
distillation columns as supplemental fuel and landfilling any balance for many years now. Due to a
recent change in environmental regulations, however, this option will no longer be possible.
Therefore, the division of the Engineering Department will be investigating the possibility of
designing a plant to convert this crude oil vacuum residue into MTBE (methyl-t-butyl ether).
MTBE is an oxygenated hydrocarbon which is extremely valuable as a gasoline additive under the
new air pollution control regulations. The first step of the process involves using partial oxidation
of the residue to form carbon monoxide and hydrogen. These intermediate products are then used
to make methanol which is later converted to MTBE upon the addition of isobutylene.
There are five basic reactions that occur in the production of MTBE from crude vacuum
residue. The first step is the partial oxidation of the carbon and hydrogen in the vacuum residue
stream using pure oxygen:
The next reaction is the water gas shift reaction, which is used to adjust the H 2 to CO ratio for the
optimal production of methanol:
Methanol is then produced from carbon monoxide and hydrogen by the reaction:
The formation of dimethyl ether and water from carbon monoxide and hydrogen also occurs as a
side reaction when producing methanol:
The final reaction involves the production of MTBE from methanol and isobutylene:
Assignment
Calculate the composition and flowrate of every stream for the process of converting methanol and
isobutylene to MTBE. Assume that the plant is designed to produce 90,000 metric tons of MTBE
per year based on operating the plant 24 hours per day, 329 days per year.