Ammonia converter horizontal design

Fig- 28.8, Horizontal ammonia converter, Kellogg design, (Hydrocarbon Processing, pp. iib-izz, uec 1978, copyright 1978 by the Gulf Publishing Company.)... 

As discussed above, several different types of ammonia converters are available. These types include axial quench converters (e.g., standard Kellogg reactors), tube cooled converters (e.g., TVA and Synetix designs), axial-radii designs (e.g., Ammonia Casale retrofit) and Kellogg s horizontal design. Typical operating data for different types of ammonia converters are shown in Table 6.4204. 

Ammonia Converter Design - Today all low-energy designs use indirectly cooled converters. The design and layout offered by various ammonia plant designers differ considerably. Kellogg s Horizontal Converter and Topsoe s Series 200 Converter use two catalyst layers with an intermediate heat exchanger for... 

Figure 8. Designs of ammonia synthesis converters (a) Principle of the autothermal ammonia synthesis reactor (b) Radial flow converter with capacities of 1,800 tpd (c) Horizontal three-bed converter and detail of the catalyst cartridge. (Source Walas, M. S., Chemical Process Equipment, Selection and Design, Butterworth Series in Chemical Engineering, 1988.)...

The design of converters for both processes is essentially similar. The short contact times demand wide, shallow beds of gauzes and the principal problems are mechanical support of the gauzes and uniformity of gas distribution to the bed. Conventionally, the gauzes are arranged as a horizontal disc supported by inconel or nichrome bars (which are inactive for ammonia decomposition). 

Figure 17.21. Some recent designs of ammonia synthesis converters, (a) Principle of the autothermal ammonia synthesis reactor. Flow is downwards along the wall to keep it cool, up through tubes imbedded in the catalyst, down through the catalyst, through the effluent-influent exchanger and out. (b) Radial flow converter with capacities to l tons/day Haldor Topsoe Co., Hellerup, Denmark), (c) Horizontal three-bed converter and detail of the catalyst cartridge. Without the exchanger the dimensions are 8 x 85 ft, pressure 170 atm, capacity to 2000 tons/day (Pullman Kellogg), (d) Vessel sketch, typical temperature profile and typical data of the ICI quench-type converter. The process gas follows a path like that of part (a) of this figure. Quench is supplied at two points (Imperial Chemical Industries).

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