KULIAH

TEKNIK REAKSI KIMIA

HOMOGEN

Jurusan Teknik Kimia

FT-Unsri

Overview of Chemical
Reactor Design
Overview of Chemical Reactor Design

Typical chemical process

Chemical reaction engineering (or reactor design) is the engineering practice

concerned with the exploitation of chemical reactions on a commercial scale.
Its goal is the successful design and operation of chemical reactors.

Thermodynamics Chemical kinetics Fluid mechanics

Mass transfer Heat transfer Economics

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Overview of Chemical Reactor Design

Performance equation
relates input to output

Input Output

Contacting pattern or how materials Kinetics or how fast things happen. If

flow through and contact each other in very fast, then equilibrium tells what
the reactor, how early or late they mix, will leave the reactor. If not so fast, then
their clumpiness or state of aggregation. the rate of chemical reaction, and maybe
By their very nature some materials are heat and mass transfer too, will
very clumpy, for instance, solids and determine what will happen.
noncoalescing liquid droplets.
Information needed to predict what a reactor can do

Output = f [input, kinetics, contacting] (1)

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Overview of Chemical Reactor Design

Develop appropriate performance equations by reaction types

Classification of chemical reactions useful in reactor design

It depends on how we choose to treat them, and this in turn depends on which
description we think is more useful.

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Overview of Chemical Reactor Design

Reaction rate is the key issue

If the rate of change in number of moles of component i due to reaction is

dNi/dt, the rate of reaction is defined as follows.

Based on unit volume of reacting fluid,

1 𝑑𝑁𝑖 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑖 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑 (2)

𝑟𝑖 = =
𝑉 𝑑𝑡 (𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑢𝑖𝑑)(𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒)

Based on unit mass of solid in fluid-solid systems,

1 𝑑𝑁𝑖 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑖 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑

𝑟𝑖 ′ = = (3)
𝑊 𝑑𝑡 (𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑑)(𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒)

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Overview of Chemical Reactor Design

Reaction rate is the key issue

Based on unit interfacial surface in two-fluid systems or
based on unit surface of solid in gas-solid systems,

′′
1 𝑑𝑁𝑖 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑖 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑
𝑟𝑖 = = (4)
𝑆 𝑑𝑡 (𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒)(𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒)

Based on unit volume of solid in gas-solid systems,

1 𝑑𝑁𝑖 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑖 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑

𝑟𝑖 ′′′ = = (5)
𝑉𝑠 𝑑𝑡 (𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑑)(𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒)

Based on unit volume of reactor, if different from the rate based on unit
volume of fluid,

1 𝑑𝑁𝑖 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑖 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑

𝑟𝑖 ′′′′ = = (6)
𝑉𝑟 𝑑𝑡 (𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟)(𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒)

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Overview of Chemical Reactor Design

Relationship between these definitions:

Variables Affecting the Rate of Reaction

In homogeneous systems the temperature, pressure, and composition are

obvious variables.

Heat and mass transfer may play important roles in determining the rates
of heterogeneous reactions.

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Overview of Chemical Reactor Design

Broad classification of reactor types

(a) The batch reactor. (b) The steady-state flow reactor. (c), (d), and (e) Various forms of the
semibatch reactor

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Overview of Chemical Reactor Design

Broad classification of reactor types

Batch Ideal for small-scale experimental studies on reaction kinetics

or small amounts of material are to be treated industrially.
Ideal for industrial purposes when large quantity of materials
is to be processed and when the rate of reaction is fairly high
Steady-state flow
to extremely high. Good product quality control can be obtai-
ned (oil industry).
It offers good control of reaction speed because the reaction
proceeds as reactants are added. It was used from the calor-
Semibatch
imetric titrations in the laboratory to the large open hearth
furnaces for steel production.

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Overview of Chemical Reactor Design
Batch Reactor
Flow Reactor

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Example I: Ammonia Synthesis

Ammonia is the initial chemical material for a variety of industries. Ammonia synthesis
is therefore a very important process in chemical world.

N2 ＋ 3H2  2NH3

The reaction features

High temperature 470~520 oC

High pressure 20～35 MPa
Exothermic process

The requirements for reactors

The reactor must bear high temperature and high pressure

The heat generated by the reaction must be removed in time

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Ammonia Synthesis

The core layer of the reactor

bare the high temperature

The reactor shell bare

the high pressure

The heat generated by the reaction

was removed by the cool N2 and H2,
and the feeding N2 and H2was
preheated

N2 and H2

NH3
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Example II: Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC)

Heavier fractions are converted into naphtha and middle distillates

AlCl3 Acid-treated clay silica-alumina Zeolites

Earthly 20th century 1930 1940 1963-Nowadays

Catalyst
20% Zeolite Y
80% Matrix

The reaction features

 FCC is an endothermic process

 Coke deposits on the catalyst,
so the catalyst easily deactivates

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Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC)

The catalyst
and coke

Coke was burned,

and the catalyst was
heated

The hot catalyst

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Example III: Hydrocarbon Thermal Cracking

The raw material is heated to 750-900 oC for pyrolysis without catalyst

Raw Material Naphtha oil, but natural gas, refinery gas, light oil, diesel, heavy oil
etc. are also occasionally used
Products Ethylene, propylene, butadiene

The reaction features

 The reaction is strongly endothermic. Increasing the temperature is advantageous for

the formation of olefins

 The residence time of the feedstock in the reactor should be as short as possible. If
reaction reaches equilibrium, large amounts of hydrogen and carbon will be formed.

 Reducing the pressure helps to improve the ethylene balance composition and
inhibit the coking reaction

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Hydrocarbon Thermal Cracking

Diameter 75 ~ 133 mm
length: 80~90 m
Wall temperature 1050 ~1100 oC

Flow rate 277 m/s

Residence time 0.09s
Outlet gas temperature 875 oC

Tubular reactor

The reactor is placed at the center of the furnace and the heat is adsorbed in the flame.

Using high temperature resistant alloy steel: HP-40 ( Ni-Cr alloy steel )

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Hydrocarbon Thermal Cracking

At the later period of the reaction

 The volume of gas in the tube increases greatly. The pressure drop caused by small
diameter is obvious
 The conversion of the reaction becomes high, and the demand for heat is
moderated
 The coking is serious and the large diameter can reduce the risk of coke blockage

Variable diameter
(increase)
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