Scale-up and thermal stability analysis of fluidized bed reactors for ethylene polymerization

A set of hydrodynamic similarity laws is applied to the scale-up of ethylene polymerization fluidized bed reactors(FBRs)under the condensed mode operation.The thermal stability of open-loop controlled FBRs is investigated by the homotopy continuation method.And the Hopf bifurcation point is selected as an index of the thermal stability similarity.The simulation results show the similarity in state variables,operation parameters,the space-time yield(STY),and the thermal stability of FBRs with different scales.Furthermore,the thermal stability behaviors and similarity of the closed-loop controlled FBRs with different scales are analyzed.The observed similar trend of Hopf bifurcation curves reveals the similarity in the thermal stability of closed-loop controlled FBRs with different scaling ratios.In general,the results of the thermal stability similarity confirm that the hydrodynamics scaling laws proposed in the work are applicable to the scale-up of FBRs under the condensed mode operation.

Modelling and simulation of two-bed PSA process for separating H2 from methane steam reforming

Methane steam reforming is the main hydrogen production method in the industry. The product of methane steam reforming contains H2, CH4, CO and CO2 and is then purified by pressure swing adsorption(PSA) technology. In this study, a layered two-bed PSA process was designed theoretically to purify H2 from methane steam reforming off gas. The effects of adsorption pressure, adsorption time and purgeto-feed ratio(P/F ratio) on process performance were investigated to design a PSA process with more than99.95% purity and 80% recovery. Since the feed composition of the PSA process changes with the upstream process, the effect of the feed composition on the process performance was discussed as well.The result showed that the increase of CH4 concentration, which was the weakest adsorbate, would have a negative impact on product purity.

Pore plugging effects on the performance of ZSM-5 catalyst in MTP reaction using a discrete model

Coke is an important medium for connecting reaction and regeneration of the methanol to propylene process on the ZSM5 catalyst.Coke grows in the meso and macro pores,it gradually worsens the diffusion inside the catalyst particle.Furthermore,pore plugging is inevitable which causes the deactivation of ZSM5 catalyst.However,current continuum model cannot reflect the changes in pore structure with clear physical concepts.A discrete model that is verified by the carbon deposition experiments is introduced to indicate the behavior of pore plugging effects.Results show that the pore plugging has a significant effect on the performance of the catalyst.The time varying profile of effectiveness factor is obtained,indicating a regular reduction with the increase of the pore plugging effect.Spatial distributions of pore size that would significantly enhance the plugging effect are also identified.