Mass Transfer Characteristics of Modular Catalytic Structured Packing
Advancing the chemical engineering fundamentals
Distillation, Absorption & Extraction - III (T2-10c)
Keywords: Reactive distillation, catalytic packing, Katapak SP, mass transfer efficiency
Combining heterogeneously catalysed chemical reaction with thermal separation in one unit appears to be an effective way to intensify industrial processes, where applicable. Further significant improvements in this direction are expected from a new generation of structured packing based modular contactors which allow certain flexibility with respect to the variation in the reaction to separation requirements in a single unit. However, little is known about hydraulic and mass transfer performance characteristics of such complex contactor-separator configurations. In other words, information essential for scale-up, design and operation of industrial scale units is still missing. To fill this gap, the mass transfer performances of Sulzer Katapak-SP11 and 12 packings with respectively one and two corrugated sheets between catalyst pockets, have been evaluated experimentally using total reflux distillation column with internal diameter of 0.45 m. Experiments have been performed at atmospheric pressure with an aqueous system and an organic mixture, including the reference structured packing MellapakPlus 752.Y. In general, better efficiencies were obtained with aqueous system. The “11” packing with one corrugated sheet separating catalyst pockets, containing closed flow channels only, proved to be prone to liquid maldistribution in preloading region. In all cases the best mass transfer efficiency was observed around the loading point. Taking a predictive model developed originally for common corrugated sheet structured packings, which was later extended to so-called high capacity packings, as a building block, a new, parallel channel model was developed that makes a distinction between catalyst filled pockets in the reaction section and the open and/or closed channels in separation section. With this simple approach it appeared possible to account properly for specific geometric features of modular catalytic structured packing, without using any empirical, packing type specific constant. The new model proved to be capable to predict the mass transfer efficiency around the loading (design) point.
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Presented Tuesday 18, 08:45 to 09:05, in session Distillation, Absorption & Extraction - III (T2-10c).
