Separation Enhanced Reactors

Keywords Natural gas, carbon capture, membrane technology, sorption based separations, separation enhanced reactors... 

Enhanced Q yields from methane oxidative coupling by means of a separative chemical reactor (with A.L. Tonkovich and R.W. Carr). Science 262,221-223 (1993). 

Figure 13.8 Schematic flow sheet for a process coupling use of a CSTBR and a generic unit operation for separation and concentration of a suspension of cells for recycle to enhance reactor productivity. The concentration factor /=X2/Xj.

Wet-process acid is manufactured by the digestion of phosphate rock (calcium phosphate) with sulfuric acid. Depending on availabiHty, other acids such as hydrochloric may be used, but the sulfuric-based processes are by far the most prevalent. Phosphoric acid is separated from the resultant calcium sulfate slurry by filtration. To generate a filterable slurry and to enhance the P2O5 content of the acid, much of the acid filtrate is recycled to the reactor. 

A large number of radiometric techniques have been developed for Pu analysis on tracer, biochemical, and environmental samples (119,120). In general the a-particles of most Pu isotopes are detected by gas-proportional, surface-barrier, or scintillation detectors. When the level of Pu is lower than 10 g/g sample, radiometric techniques must be enhanced by preliminary extraction of the Pu to concentrate the Pu and separate it from other radioisotopes (121,122). Alternatively, fission—fragment track detection can detect Pu at a level of 10 g/g sample or better (123). Chemical concentration of Pu from urine, neutron irradiation in a research reactor, followed by fission track detection, can achieve a sensitivity for Pu of better than 1 mBq/L (4 X 10 g/g sample) (124). 

In a batch reactor, the reaclants are loaded at once the concentration then varies with time, but at any one time it is uniform throughout. Agitation seiwes to mix separate feeds initially and to enhance heat transfer. In a semibatch operation, some of the reactants are charged at once and the others are then charged gradually. 

Furthermore, the application of the SOD membrane in a FT reaction has been investigated. The advantages of water removal in a FT reaction are threefold (i) reduction of H20-promoted catalyst deactivation, (ii) increased reactor productivity, and (iii) displaced water gas shift (WGS) equilibrium to enhance the conversion of CO2 to hydrocarbons [53]. Khajavi etal. report a mixture of H2O/H2 separation factors 10000 and water fluxes of 2.3 kg m h under... 

As expected, heat exchanged per unit of volume in the Shimtec reactor is better than the one in batch reactors (15-200 times higher) and operation periods are much smaller than in a semibatch reactor. These characteristics allow the implementation of exo- or endothermic reactions at extreme operating temperatures or concentrations while reducing needs in purifying and separating processes and thus in raw materials. Indeed, since supply or removal of heat is enhanced, semibatch mode or dilutions become useless and therefore, there is an increase in selectivity and yield. 

GP 11] ]R 20] Investigations with a Pd membrane reactor relied on reaction of streams separated via a membrane (to prevent complete mixing of reactants, not to enhance conversion) [11]. A hydrogen/nitrogen stream is guided parallel to an oxygen stream, both separated by the membrane and water is thereby formed. The membranes, made by thin-film processes, can sustain a pressure up to 5 bar. 

The product distribution is insensitive to the concentration of reactant B. If B is cheap and does not offer a potential pollution problem downstream, its concentration may be kept at any convenient level. If B is costly or must be removed for other reasons, one has the options of operating with low B concentrations at high conversions in a relatively large reactor to produce a product containing very little B, or of operating at higher B concentrations in a smaller reactor with separation and recycle of unused B. The specified product distribution requires that the mole ratio of V to W be 3 1. To produce 1 mole of W and three of F, one must consume 4 moles of A and 5 moles of B. The feed ratio employed in an actual situation may differ appreciably from 1.25 to enhance the reaction rate or to allow for discarding some A and B. 

Figure 18.1 Using a series of reactors to enhance product yield in a reversible reaction by (a) reactant addition and (b) selective product removal by means of separators Sej and Se2...

From a separation-process point of view, a fluid-fluid reaction is intended to enhance separation (e.g., preparation of feed for a subsequent process step, product purification, or effluent control for environmental protection). Examples include the use of ethanolamines for the removal of H2S and C02 (reactions (A) and (B) in Section 9.2), the removal of SO, by an aqueous stream of a hydroxide, and absorption of 02 by blood or desorption of C02 from blood. A solid catalyst may be involved as a third phase, as in hydrodesulfurization in a trickle-bed reactor. 

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