ChE 6630

Tutorial Review Project

Effect of Pressure Modulation in Mass Transfer Limited Gas Phase

Catalytic Reactions

By,
Fatima Mahnaz
1st year PhD student
Department of Chemical Engineering,
University of Virginia
18th April, 2021

Submitted to,
Dr. Geoffrey M. Geise
Associate Professor,
Department of Chemical Engineering,
University of Virginia
 Index

1. Introduction ..............................................................................................................1
2. Literature review ......................................................................................................2
2.1. Effect of mass transfer constraints on heterogeneous catalysis ........................2
2.1.1. Influences of external mass transfer .........................................................2
2.1.2. Influences of internal mass transfer ..........................................................2
2.2. Mechanisms of gas transport on porous media .................................................3
2.3. Relationship between reaction kinetics and diffusion ......................................3
2.3.1. Thiele modulus..........................................................................................4
2.3.2. Effectiveness factor ...................................................................................4
2.4. Experimental studies on periodic pressure modulation for catalytic gas-phase
reaction ...........................................................................................................................4
3. Tutorial component ..................................................................................................7
3.1. Effect of pressure modulation to overcome mass transfer limitations..............7
3.1.1. Assumptions..............................................................................................7
3.1.2. Model derivation .......................................................................................8
3.1.3. Results .....................................................................................................10
3.1.4. Implications.............................................................................................12

4. Summary .................................................................................................................14

References ....................................................................................................................15