L -22 : Multiphase Reactors

Prof. K.K.Pant
Department of Chemical Engineering
IIT Delhi.
kkpant@chemical.iitd.ac.in

Multiphase Reactors
Reactors in which Two or more phases are
involved in Reactions.

Majority of reactions are : Gas liquid reactions

involving catalyst as solid material.
Hydrotreating, FT reaction, Hydrogenation
Reaction etc.

Three-Phase Reactors:

Three-phase reactors
4

Multi-phase Reactors- Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages

Disadvantages

Catalytic Fixed The fluid flow regimes

The intra-particle
Bed Reactor
approach plug flow, so
diffusion
high conversion can be
resistance is very
achieved.
high.
Pressure drop is low.

Comparatively low
Heat and mass
transfer rates
Owing to the high holdup there is better radial
mixing and channeling Catalyst
is not encountered.
replacement is
relatively hard and
requires shut
High catalyst load per
down.
unit of reactor volume

Three-phase Reactors- Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages
TrickleBed
Reactor

Gas and liquid flow regimes

approach plug flow; high
conversion may be achieved.
Large catalyst particle, therefore,
catalyst separation is easy.

Disadvantages
Poor distribution of the
liquid-phase
Partial wetting of the catalyst
High intra-particle resistance

Low liquid holdup, therefore liquid Poor radial mixing

homogenous reactions are
minimized.
Temperature control is
difficult for highly exothermic
Low pressure drop
reactions
Flooding problems are not
encountered.
High catalyst load per unit reactor
volume.

Low gas-liquid interaction

decreases mass transfer
coefficients.

Catalytic Fixed-Bed Reactor - Design Model

Mass Balance around the catalyst

(kcac)i(CG CS )i (Rnet)i
Gas-Phase component mass balance (Plug Flow model)

UG dCGi (kcac)i(CG CS )i 0.0

dz
Gas-Phase component mass balance (Dispersion model)

2
d
Gi
dCGi (kcac)i (CG CS )i 0.0
DGi C

U
G
dz
d 2z

Energy Model

dT
UGGCpG
( RjHRj ) UA(T Ta)
dz

SLURRY BUBBLE COLUMN REACTORS : DESIGN APPROACH

Steps in Slurry Reactors

9

Reactions Steps in slurry reactors

10

2. Rate of gas absorptions ( Hydrogenation Reaction)

3. Transport to the Catalyst Pellet

11

4. Diffusion and Reaction in the Catalyst Pellet

m = mass of cata/vol of solution

Determination of RDS

12

13

14

15

16