Multiple phase CSTR

Multiple Phases Reaclions between gas/liquid, liquid/liquid, and fluid/solid phases are often tested in CSTRs. Other laboratoiy types are suggested by the commercial units depicted in appropriate sketches in Sec. 23. Liquids can be reacted with gases of low solubili-... 

Industrial reactors are usually more complex than the simple simulator library models. Real reactors usually involve multiple phases and have strong mass transfer, heat transfer, and mixing effects. The residence time distributions of real reactors can be determined by tracer studies and seldom exactly match the simple CSTR or PFR models. 

Thermal stability of chemical reactors is a classic yet active area within chemical engineering science. Considerable research has focused on determining safe operating criteria for batch, CSTR, and tubular reactors. Current work has been directed towards understanding thermal stability in the presence of multiple phases (fluid/solid and gas/liquid) and multiple reactions with realistic, complex reaction rates expressions. The advent of computational methods has allowed for this field to continue to thrive. A sound understanding of these principles may help improve industrial reactor performance by reducing waste and costly separation operations and help maintain a clean environment. 

MULTIPLE CHEMICAL REACTIONS IN A LIQUID-PHASE CSTR... 

Consider the following generic complex multiple reaction scheme that occurs isothermally in a liquid-phase CSTR train. Both reactors operate at the same temperature. In the first elementary step, 1 mol of reactant A and 2 mol of reactant B reversibly produce intermediate product D, which is the desired product ... 

Calculate the CSTR operating temperature that maximizes the yield of a reactive intermediate. Consider the following multiple reaction scheme that occurs in one liquid-phase CSTR ... 

Most chemical processes involve two important operations (reaction and separalion) that are typically carried out in different sections of the plant and use different equipment. The reaction section of the process can use several types of reactors [continuous stirred-tank reactor (CSTR), tubular, or batch] and operate under a wide variety of conditions (catalyzed, adiabatic, cooled or heated, single phase, multiple phases, etc.). The separation section can have several types of operations (distillation, extraction, crystallization, adsorption, etc.), with distillation being by far the most commonly used method. Recycle streams between the two sections of these conventional multiunit flowsheets are often incorporated in the process for a variety of reasons to improve conversion and yield, to minimize the production of undesirable byproducts, to improve energy efficiency, and to improve dynamic controllability. 

These are two coupled algebraic equations, which must be solved simultaneously to determine the solutions Cj(x) and T(t). For multiple reactions the + 1 equations are easily written down, as are the differential equations for the transient situation. However, for these situations the solutions are considerably more difficult to find We will in fact consider theaolutions of the transient CSTR equations in Chapter 6 to describe phase-plane trajectories and the stability of solutions in the nonisothermal CSTR. 

The CSTR is particularly useful for reaction schemes that require low concentration, such as selectivity between multiple reactions or substrate inhibition in a chemostat (see Section IV). The reactor also has applications for heterogeneous systems where high mixing gives high contact time between phases. Liquid-liquid CSTRs are used for the saponification of fats and for suspension and emulsion polymerizations. Gas-liquid mixers are used for the oxidation of cyclohexane. Gas homogeneous CSTRs are extremely rare. 

Example S tl Multiple Reactions in a CSTR The elementary liquid-phase reactions... 

Figure 6.6 Phase-plane diagram (Ca — T) for a CSTR exhibiting steady-state multiplicity.

Multiple Steady States and Local Stability in CSTR.—In the two decades since the seminal work of van Heerden and Amimdson, there has been vast output of papers conoemed with the dynamic behaviour of stirred-tank reactors. Bilous and Amundson put the van He den analysis of local stability of the equilibrium state on a rigorous basis by use of linear stability theory. Their method is similar to the phase-plane treatments of thermokinetic ignitions and oscillations discussed here in Sections 4 and 3 (and preceded them dironologically). The mass and energy balance for the CSTR having a single reactant as feedstock may be expressed as ... 

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