MODULE 3

Comparing Reactors for Single

Reactions
(Dr. ADARSH KUMAR ARYA)

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 Comparing Batch Reactors with Flow reactors
Advantage of Batch Reactors
• Small instrumentation cost CONCLUSION
• Flexibility of operation (may • In general, the batch reactor is
be shut down easily and well suited to produce small
quickly) amounts of material and to
Disadvantages of Batch produce many different products
Reactors from one piece of equipment.
• High labor and handling cost • On the other hand, for the
• Often considerable shutdown chemical treatment of materials in
time to empty, clean out, and large amounts the continuous
refill
process is nearly always found to
• Poorer quality control of the
be more economical
product.
Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya
 Comparing PFR & CSTR
Performance Equation for CSTR for nth order equation

Performance Equation for PFTR for nth order equation

Taking the ratio

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 Conclusions
1. For n (positive):

2. For n = 0

3. For low conversion,

size is slightly affected
(size of both reactors is
almost same)

4. As density decreases
or expansion increases,
and

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 Size Comparison of CSTR and PFR for fixed
conversion- Graphical presentation

• Conclusion
• Area of CSTR is the
area of the rectangle

• Area of PFR is
under the curve

• For the same

conversion
MFR
m XA

C A0  rA
PFR
p dX A

C A0Kr. AryarA
Dr. Adarsh
 CSTR in series
1. Different size CSTR in series
(a) Find outlet conc from the series combination
(b) Best arrangement of CSTRs

2. Same size CSTR in series

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 Different size CSTR in series (Find outlet conc. from
the series combination)

• Applying material balance on reactor 2

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

Hence for reactors 1, 2 and 3

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

Best arrangement of compressors

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 CONCLUSIONS

Area is maximized when M is at

that point where the slope of the
curve equals the slope of the
diagonal NL of the rectangle
This determines the intermediate
conversion X, as well as the size of
units needed.
For the special case of first-order
reactions equal-size reactors are
best; for reaction orders n > 1 the
smaller reactor should come first;
for n < 1 the larger should come
first
Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya
Equal size CSTR in series

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya
•
C  1  1  C0 
 P    dC A  ln  
C0  r k C 
 A

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 CSTR in parallel
*All CSTRs are of equal size and fed with equal feed
rates. Temp. remains the same in all streams

*Conversion and reaction rate in each reactor remain the

same

FA0 X A
V (1)
rA

V  V1  V2  V3 ........  Vn  NVi (2)

FA0  FA01  FA02  FA03  ...  FA0 n  NFA0i

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

(3)
 Putting Values of Eqn. 2. and 3 in 1
V FA0  X Ai   X Ai 
 V  FA0  
    rAi 
N N   rAi 
Conclusion
The result shows that for:
*CSTR in parallel, the conversion achieved in any one of the
reactors is = if all reactants were fed to one large reactor of
Volume V

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

PFR in series- fixed conversion

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 Conclusion
1) Total volume of two PFR in series is identical to that
of a single Plug flow of volume V for the same
conversion
2) Hence, there is no point in putting two PFR in a
series, since a single PFR of equivalent volume will
give the same conversion
Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya
 Plug flow reactors in Parallel

Necessary Condition for the same conversion

*For Plug flow in parallel combination or has to
SAME in each branch

F0  F01  F02
V V3

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya
F01 F02
Reactors of different types in series

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

Numerical

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 Recycle Reactors
 When the reaction is autocatalytic
 Necessary to maintain isothermal conditions of fluid along the entire
reactor
 Necessary to promote certain selectivity

VR v3 F3
R  
VL vL FL

• Recycle ratio varies from 0 to infinity

• As we increase the recycle ratio the behavior shifts from Plug
flow (R=0) to CSTR (Mixed flow)
Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya
F ' A0  RFA0  FA0  FA0 ( R  1)  F ' A0  FA0 ( R  1)
Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya
 (3)

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 (5)
• From Eqns. (3) and (4):

• Putting Eqns. (2) and (5) in eqns. (1)

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

Comparison of reactors for Autocatalytic Reactions

• When a material reacts away

by any nth order rate (n > 0)
in a batch reactor, its rate of
disappearance is rapid at the
start when the concentration
of reactant is high.

• This rate then slows

progressively as reactant is
consumed.

• In an autocatalytic reaction,
however, the rate at the start is
low because little product is
present; it increases to a
maximum as product is
formed and then drops again
to a low value as reactant is
consumed

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

 Optimum Recycle Operations
• When material is to be processed to some fixed final conversion XAf in a recycle
reactor, reflection suggests that there must be a particular recycle ratio which is
optimum in that it minimizes the reactor volume or space-time.

• Determining the optimum R

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

• This operation requires differentiating under an integral sign.

• From the theorems of calculus, if

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya

Dr. Adarsh Kr. Arya