Multiphase heterogeneous catalytic reactions

B. Investigation of Phase Behavior in Multiphase Heterogeneous Catalytic Reaction... 

Different types of reactors are applied in practice (Figure 1.14). Stirred tank reactors (STR), very often applied for homogeneous, enzymatic and multiphase heterogeneous catalytic reactions, can be operated batchwise (batch reactor, BR), semi-batchwise (semibatch reactor, SBR) or continuously (continuous strirred tank reactor, CSTR)... 

We first present general criteria for the rational use of MSRs on the basis of fundamentals of chemical reaction engineering [21-24], The main characteristics of MSRs are discussed, and the potential gain in reactor performance relative to that of conventional chemical reactors is quantified (Section 2). Subsequently, the most important designs of fluid-solid and multiphase reaction systems are described and evaluated (Sections 3 and 4). Because microstructured multichannel reactors with catalytically active walls are by far the most extensively investigated MSRs for heterogeneous catalytic reactions, we present their principal design and recent synthetic methods separately in Section 5. 

Heterogeneous catalysis takes place in multiphase systems. If a new phase, the supercritical phase, is selectively introduced, remarkable change can be expected. The effects caused by the introduction of a supercritical phase depend on many parameters, such as fluid properties, reaction conditions, and affinity. Successful supercritical phase heterogeneous catalytic reactions can be realized, as long as these parameters are carefully controlled. With greater activities, catalyst lifetimes, or selectivities than for gas phase or liquid phase reactions, some supercritical phase reactions have industrial potentid. 

Heterogeneous reactors are multiphase reactors in which the reaction medium is a multiphase medium. Heterogeneous reactors are broadly classified as reactors in which multiphase non-catalytic reactions take place and reactors in which multiphase catalytic reactions take place. Principles of multiphase reaction kinetics and design of multiphase reactors are discussed in this chapter. 

However, research on catalytic reactions in ionic liquids should not focus only on the question how to make some specific products more economical or ecological by using a new solvent and presumably a new multiphasic process. By bridging in a novel and highly attractive manner the gap between homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis, the application of ionic liquids in catalysis gives rise to more fundamental questions. 

Very often the rates of chemical transformations are affected by the rates of other processes, such as heat and mass transfer. The process should be treated as a part of kinetics. The gas/liquid mass transfer in multiphase heterogeneous and homogeneous catalytic reactions could be treated in a similar way. The mathematical framework for modelling diffusion inside solid catalyst particles of supported metal catalysts or immolisided enzymes does not differ that much, but proper care should be taken of the reaction kinetics. 

Trickle-bed reactors, wherein gas and liquid reactants are contacted in a co-current down flow mode in the presence of heterogeneous catalysts, are used in a large number of industrial chemical processes. Being a multiphase catalytic reactor with complex hydrodynamics and mass transfer characteristics, the development of a generalized model for predicting the performance of such reactors is still a difficult task. However, due to its direct relevance to industrial-scale processes, several important aspects with respect to the influence of external and intraparticle mass transfer effects, partial wetting of catalyst particles and heat effects have been studied previously (Satterfield and Way (1972) Hanika et. al., (1975,1977,1981) Herskowitz and Mosseri (1983)). The previous work has mainly addressed the question of catalyst effectiveness under isothermal conditions and for simple kinetics. It is well known that most of the industrially important reactions represent complex reaction kinetics and very often multistep reactions. Very few attempts have been made on experimental verification of trickle-bed reactor models for multistep catalytic reactions in the previous work. 

Reaction rates typically are strongly affected by temperature (76,77), usually according to the Arrhenius exponential relationship. However, side reactions, catalytic or equiHbrium effects, mass-transfer limitations in heterogeneous (multiphase) reactions, and formation of intermediates may produce unusual behavior (76,77). Proposed or existing reactions should be examined carefully for possible intermediate or side reactions, and the kinetics of these side reactions also should be observed and understood. 

The standard, when one considers multiphase reactors, has become more complex over the years. Most can be classified as reactions over heterogenous catalysts. The catalytic activity occurs in one phase, the solid phase, while transport of the reactants occurs in a gas or liquid phase, or both. A common example is the catalytic converter for automobile exhaust gas. The key steps for a packed bed reactor are ... 

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