CPE606 – PROCESS MODELLING

DR NORIZAR ANUAR

EH2206B
YEAR: 2021
JACKETED PLUG FLOW REACTOR

NAME STUDENT ID
ARIF HANAFI BIN MD ZAKI 2020983171
NELLISA SHARIZA BINTI AWANG RAMLI 2020970415
MUHAMMAD ZULHAZIZI BIN ZAKARIA 2020985709

I. ABSTRACT
The purpose of this project is to determine the dimensions of the reactor by calculating the
working volume of the reactor to produce Formaldehyde using methanol by using silver
 catalyst method. The starting point of the design project was background research for the
process literature. The research includes the process flow diagram of the production,
chemical reaction, and kinetic data of the process. The second stage of this project was
simulating the reactor by using ASPEN Hysys software based on the data obtained from the
research studies. The purpose of the simulation was to obtain it process condition of the
reactor. The quantitative analysis for the design parameters was calculated afterwards by
using mathematical models developed using the principle of mass, moles, and energy
balances. For this project, the plug flow reactor design was assumed to be in irreversible
conditions, where the density was constant throughout the process and the reactor are mixing
perfectly. Euler’s method was used to determine the concentration and temperature profile
that will be used for the reactor design. The residence time obtained for the reactor are 23.38
hours, whilst its volume is 218.7643 m3 with length of 14.826 m and the diameter of 1.5628
m. The reactor yielded at 94.34% and the reactor type decided was Jacketed Plug Flow
Reactor.

II. PROCESS BACKGROUND

This method uses a silver catalyst in making formaldehyde over which partial
oxidation and dehydrogenation of methanol take place. The reactor feed is a mixture of air,
steam, and methanol, which is on the flammable side of the methanol-rich side, and the
oxygen reaction is nearly complete. The main reactions that occur during the silver process
for the conversion of methanol to formaldehyde are reactions 1 and 2. Reactions 3 and 4 are
secondary, producing by-products. Methyl formate, methane, and formic acid are additional
by-products.

CH3OH → CH2O + H2 ΔH = +84 kJ/mol …(1)

CH3OH + ½ O2 → CH2O + H2O ΔH = -159 kJ/mol …(2)

CH2O → CO + H2 ΔH = 12.5 kJ/mol …(3)

CH3OH + 3/2 O2 → CO2 + 2H2O ΔH = -674 kJ/mol …(4)

In most industries, the methanol to water (as steam) ratio in the feed is 60:40. There
are three major reasons why steam is applied to the feed. It increases the total moles
available, which raises the equilibrium conversion for endothermic reaction 1 (this reaction is
preferred by high temperature, low pressure, and a high value of total moles). The second
 purpose for adding steam is to protect the catalyst from damage. It prevents the silver from
sintering (which results in a loss of activity) and slows the formation of carbonaceous
deposits on the silver (that decrease the active region). Steam serves as a heat sink as well.
The addition of more methanol or steam is the most common method of temperature
regulation. Nevertheless, these additions are constrained by the formaldehyde product's
desired composition. For the feed into reactors, the methanol to oxygen ratio is about 2:5.
Since the reaction is adiabatically led, changing the amount of air fed to the reactor is likely
to disrupt the net exothermicity and reaction temperature rise. The feed enters the reactor at a
temperature that is significantly lower than the reactor's exit temperature. In the production of
formaldehyde, the BASF process was used which includes complete conversion (97-98%) of
methanol. The reaction is carried out at 680 - 720°C and silver is used in the form of crystals
(at atmospheric pressure). The feed is superheated and fed to the reactor, where it passes
through a 25 to 30mm thick bed of silver crystals. The temperature is high enough to allow
for complete conversion (the rate and equilibrium conversion of the endothermic
dehydrogenation reaction (1) increase as the temperature rises). When the gases exit the
reactor, they are cooled to avoid unwanted side reactions before being fed to an absorption
column, where the formaldehyde is washed out, yielding a product of 40-55 weight percent
formaldehyde, 1.3 weight percent methanol, and 0.01 weight percent formic acid. The yield
ranges between 89.5 and 90.5%. The largest well-known reactor for this process has a
diameter of 3.2 meters and produces 72000 tonnes of 100% formaldehyde annually (Baber,
2018).

III. CHEMICAL REACTIONS AND KINETICS INFORMATION

Table 1: Chemical Reaction & Kinetics Data for the Production of Formaldehyde from Methanol
Chemical Methanol Oxidation Side Reaction
Information
Chemical reaction CH3OH + ½ O2 → CH2O + H2O CH3OH → CH2O + H2 ΔH

8774 12500
ΔH = -159 kJ/mol = +84 kJ/mol

ln 𝑘1 = 12.50 − ln 𝑘3 = 16.9 −
Rate Constant

𝑇 𝑇
*T obtain from
the initial

ln 𝑘1 = 12.5 − ln 𝑘3 = 16.9 −
temperature of the
process condition
k1=2.3586x10-3 hr-1 k3 = 7.2853 ×10-5 hr-1
 7439 15724
ln 𝑘2 = −17.29 + ln 𝑘4 = 25.0 −
𝑇 𝑇
ln 𝑘2 = −17.29 + ln 𝑘4 = 25.0 −

𝑘𝑔𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝐴 𝑘𝑔𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒
k2 = 0.2096 hr-1 2.6306 hr-1

−𝑟𝐴1 [ ] −𝑟𝐴2 [ ]
Reaction rate

𝑘𝑔𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑦𝑠𝑡. ℎ𝑟 𝑘𝑔𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑦𝑠𝑡. ℎ𝑟
−0.082𝐶𝑎. 𝑇. 𝑘1 −𝑘3. (0.082𝐶𝑎. 𝑇)0.5
= 1+ = 0.5
0.082𝐶𝑎. 𝑇. 𝑘2 1 + 𝑘4. (0.082𝐶𝑎. 𝑇)
Kinetic data k1 = 2.3586E-03 k2 = k3 = 7.2853E-05 k4 =
2.0960E-01 2.6306E-04

Product Yield
𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑
% 𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 = 𝑋 100%
𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑

0.2483 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑓𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

% 𝑌𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑 = 𝑋 100
0.2632 𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑓𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

%Yield = 94.34%

*All the Chemical Information and data above were obtained from the studies made by
(Sanhoob et al., 2012)
IV. PROCESS DESCRIPTION

Figure 1-Process Flow Diagram of Formaldehyde Production from Methanol by using Silver Catalyst Method
The process flow diagram for formaldehyde utilizing silver catalyst is shown in
Figure 1. Air is compressed and heated, and fresh and recycled methanol is pumped and
heated before being blended to give reactor feed. The reactor is a unique design in which the
silver catalyst is hung above a heat exchanger tube bank in the shape of wire gauze. The heat
created in the adiabatic reactor section must be evacuated fast since the net reaction is
particularly exothermic, hence the proximity of the heat exchanger tubes. On the shell side,
the heat exchanger resembles a pool boiler, with a pool of water. If the effluent temperature is
too high, the set point on the steam pressure line is decreased to increase boiler feed water
vaporization (bfw). The liquid-level controller on the bfw is set to keep the tube bundle fully
immersed in most cases. Most of the methanol and formaldehyde in the reactor effluent are
absorbed into water in an absorber, with the remaining light gases purged into the off-gas
stream. Methanol, formaldehyde, and water are poured down a distillation column, where the
methanol overhead is recycled, and the bottom product is a formaldehyde/water mixture with
a ≤wt% methanol inhibitor. This combination is chilled before being transferred to a storage
tank with a four-day capacity. Because some of the downstream procedures are batch, this
storage tank is required. When the downstream operation draws from the storage tank, the
required amount of water is added since the storage tank's composition exceeds 37 wt percent
formaldehyde (Azevedo, n.d.).
V. PROCESS CONDITION AND DESIGN PARAMETER
1. Process condition

For plug flow reactor, the process condition needed to be used shown in Table below. All
of the data were obtained from the hysys simulation done for this production
Table 2: Process condition data obtained from the hsysy simulation
Inlet stream Outlet stream
Temperature (K) 473 873.1
Pressure (atm) 3 3
Volume Flowrate (m3/h) 9.734 10.03
Initial Methanol 0.02546
concentration Oxygen 0.01087
(kmol/m3 Need to be calculated
Formaldehyde 1.546X10-5
Water 3.865X10-5
Hydrogen 7.73X10-6

2. Assumptions

• The density is constant throughout the process, ρin=ρout=ρ

• Perfectly radial mixing
• Irreversible conditions
• Let component A=methanol, B=Oxygen, C=Formaldehyde, D=Water, E=Hydrogen

3. Total Continuity Equation (TCE) General

equation:

𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤

𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒
[ ]−[ ]=[ ] , unit: mass/time
𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚
𝑑(𝜌𝑉)
𝑑𝑡 = 𝐹0𝜌0 − 𝐹𝜌

𝑑(𝑉)
𝜌 𝑑𝑡= 𝜌(𝐹0 − 𝐹) ;ρ=ρ0=constant

𝑑𝑉
𝑑𝑡 = 𝐹0 − 𝐹

𝑑𝑉
= 9.734 − 10.03
 𝑑𝑡

𝑑𝑉

= −0.296
𝑑𝑡

4. Component Continuity Equation (CCE)

Vguess= 948.7 m3

𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒
𝑜𝑓 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝑓
𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛

𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑗𝑡ℎ = [𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑗𝑡ℎ] − [ 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑗𝑡ℎ ] + [𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑗𝑡ℎ

]
𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚
𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚 𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚 𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑚𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙
𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 [ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚 ]

CCE component A
𝑑𝐶𝐴𝑉
𝑑𝑡 = 𝐹0𝐶𝐴0 − 𝐹𝐶𝐴 + 𝑉((−𝑟𝐴1) + (−𝑟𝐴2))

𝑑𝐶
𝐴

𝑉 𝑑𝑡 = 𝐹0𝐶𝐴0 − 𝐹𝐶𝐴 + 𝑉((−𝑟𝐴1) + (−𝑟𝐴2))

𝑑𝐶𝐴 𝐹0𝐶𝐴0−𝐹𝐶𝐴 −0.082𝐶𝐴.𝑇.𝑘1 −𝑘3.(0.082𝐶𝐴.𝑇)

0.5

= +( )+( )
0.5

𝑑𝑡 𝑉 1+0.082𝐶𝐴.𝑇.𝑘2 1+𝑘4.(0.082𝐶𝐴.𝑇)

𝑑𝐶𝐴 9.734(0.02546)−10.03𝐶𝐴 −0.082�𝐴×473×0.0023586 −0.000072853.(0.082

�𝐴×473)0.5

= +( )+()
1+0.082
� �𝐴×473×0.2096 1+0.00026306.(0.082
�𝐴×473)0.5

𝑑𝑡 948.7
� �

CCE component B

𝑑𝐶 𝑑𝑡𝐵𝑉 = 𝐹0𝐶𝐵0 − 𝐹𝐶𝐵 + 𝑉(−2𝑟𝐴1)

𝑉 𝑑𝐶 𝑑𝑡𝐵 = 𝐹0𝐶𝐵0 − 𝐹𝐶𝐵 + 𝑉 (−2𝑟𝐴1)

𝑑𝐶𝐵 = 𝐹0𝐶𝐵0−𝐹𝐶𝐵 )
( )
1+0.082𝐶𝐴𝐴.𝑇.𝑘1.𝑇.𝑘2
−0.082𝐶

+(
𝑑𝑡 𝑉 2
 ( )
𝑑𝐶𝐵 9.734(0.01087)−10.03𝐶𝐵 −0.0821+0.082𝐶
𝐴
𝐶.473×0.0023586𝐴.473×0.2096

= +
𝑑𝑡 948.7 2

CCE component C
= � 0�𝐶0 − 𝐹 �− 𝑉((−𝑟 � 1 )−(− 𝑟� 2 ))
𝑑𝐶𝐶�
𝑑𝑡�
𝐶
� 𝑑𝑡 = � 0�𝐶0 − 𝐹 �− 𝑉((−𝑟 � 1 )−(− 𝑟� 2 ))
𝑑𝐶𝐶 ��
� � �

𝐶 −0.082� .𝑇.𝑘1
= −( )−( )
𝑑𝐶𝐶 � 0�𝐶0−𝐹 𝐶 −𝑘3.(0.082𝐶𝐴.𝑇)
0.5
� �� � � �
𝐴
𝑑𝑡 � � � 𝐶 1+0.082� .𝑇.𝑘2
� 𝐴 1+𝑘4.(0.082𝐶.𝑇)0.5 𝐴

= − ( ) −( � 𝐴×473)0.5)
𝑑𝐶𝐶 9.734(0.00001546)−10.03
�𝐶 −0.082� 𝐴×473×0.0023586 −0.000072853.(0.082
� 𝐴×473)0.5
� �

𝑑𝑡 948.7 � �
1+0.082� 𝐴×473×0.2096 1+0.00026306.(0.082
� �

CCE component D
𝑑𝐶𝐷𝑉
𝑑𝑡= 𝐹0𝐶𝐷0 − 𝐹𝐶𝐷 − 𝑉(−𝑟𝐴1)

𝑑𝐶
𝐷

𝑉 𝑑𝑡 = 𝐹0𝐶𝐷0 − 𝐹𝐶𝐷 − 𝑉(−𝑟𝐴1)

𝑑𝐶𝐷 𝐹0𝐶𝐷0−𝐹𝐶𝐷 −0.082𝐶𝐴.𝑇.𝑘1

= −( )
𝑑𝑡 𝑉 1+0.082𝐶𝐴.𝑇.𝑘2

𝑑𝐶𝐷 9.734(0.00003865)−10.03𝐶𝐴 −0.082𝐶𝐴×473×0.0023586

= −( )
𝑑𝑡 948.7 1+0.082𝐶𝐴×473×0.2096

CCE component
= � 0�𝐸0 − 𝐹 � − 𝑉(−𝑟 � 2)
𝑑𝐶𝐸�
𝑑𝑡�
𝐶
� 𝑑𝑡 = � 0�𝐸0 − 𝐹 � − 𝑉(−𝑟 � 2)
𝑑𝐶𝐸 ��
� �

𝐶�
= −( )
𝑑𝐶𝐸 � 0�𝐸0−𝐹 𝐸 −𝑘3.(0.082𝐶𝐴.𝑇)
0.5
� �� �

𝑑𝑡 �� � 𝐶 1+𝑘4.(0.082𝐶.𝑇)0.5 𝐴

= −( 0.5) 𝑑𝑡 948.7
𝑑𝐶𝐸 9.734(0.00773)−10.03
�𝐴 −0.000072853.(0.082
� 𝐴×473)0.5
�
� � 1+0.00026306.(0.082𝐶𝐴×473)
 5. Euler Method for Concentration Profile

Figure 2: Concentration profile

6. Residence Time

i. Determination of residence time, 𝜏

The reactor is designed to achieve maximum conversion to Formaldehyde which is 85.9967%
conversion for each reactor. Hence, the outlet concentration of formaldehyde can be
calculated to obtain the suitable time when the reaction is complete (Sanhoob et al., 2012).

Ca = Cao (1-X) = 0.02546 (1-0.859967) = 0.003565 kmol/m3

Based on the graph of concentration profiles, at time between 20 to 25 hrs, the outlet
concentration of methanol able to produce yield of 0.003565 kmol/m3
Time (hrs) Ca (kmol/m3)
20 0.004182
𝜏 0.003565
25 0.003270

Interpolation to obtain the exact residence time:

0.003270−0.003565
= 𝜏 = 23.3827 hrs ≈ 23.38 hrs
0.003270−0.004182

ii. Determination of the outlet concentration of A, B, C and D using the residence time.

Time, hr Outlet Concentration, (kmol/m3)

20 0.004182 0.000713 0.021147 0.020227 0.002414

23.38 Ca Cb Cc Cd Ce
25 0.003270 0.000308 0.022026 0.021010 0.002830
 Interpolation to obtain outlet concentration at 𝜏=23.38 ℎ𝑟𝑠
Ca = 3.5655×10--3 Cb = 4.3922 ×10-4 Cc = 0.02174 Cd = 0.02076 Ce = 2.6952×10-3
7. Volume of Reactor
Since it is involving multicomponent, the mixture density, 𝜌𝑚𝑖𝑥 is determined.

𝜌𝑚𝑖𝑥 = Σ ∙ = (𝜌a×𝑥a) + (𝜌b×𝑥b) + (𝜌c×𝑥c) + (𝜌d×𝑥d) + ( 𝜌e×𝑥e)

Component Density, kg/ m3 Concentration, kmol/ Mole Fraction, x 𝝆×𝒙, kg/ m3
m3
Methanol 795.72 3.5655×10--3 0.0724696 61.8166
-4
Oxygen 1137.68 4.3922 ×10 0.0089273 10.1564
Water 806.37 0.02174 0.4418706 356.3112
Formaldehyde 997.99 0.02076 0.4219519 421.1038
-3
Hydrogen 752.44 2.6952×10 0.0547806 41.2191
Total 0.04919992 1 890.6071

This process is designed to produce formaldehyde with capacity of 63000 tonnes/year. Thus,
volumetric flowrate, F can be calculated.

𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑠 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝑘𝑔 m3 m3 F = 63000 × × × × =

9.3569
𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦𝑠 ℎ𝑟𝑠 𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑒 𝑘𝑔 ℎ𝑟

m3
𝑉 = 𝜏 × 𝐹 = 23.38 hrs × 9.3569 =
3

218.7643 m ℎ𝑟

8. Temperature Profile
To determine the temperature profile for the process, we need to calculate the reactor and
jacket temperature first. A derived energy balance is required to give an accurate value and
analysis. Below is the derived energy balance for reactor and jacket: - Energy balance for
reactor temperature analysis:

Energy balance for jacket

Components Heat of reaction (kJ/mol)

 CH3OH -201200
O2 0
CH2O -115900
H2O -241830
H2 0

𝜆r= ∆𝐻°𝑟1,2 = ∑ ∆𝐻°𝑓 (𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑠) − ∑ ∆𝐻°𝑓

Heat of reaction for both reaction:

(𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑠) 𝜆1=∆𝐻°𝑟1 = ∑ ∆𝐻°𝑓 (𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑠) − ∑

∆𝐻°𝑓 (𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑠) =-156530 kJ
𝑚𝑜𝑙

𝜆2= ∆𝐻°𝑟2 = ∑ ∆𝐻°𝑓 (𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑠) − ∑ ∆𝐻°𝑓 (𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑠) = 85300 kJ

𝑚𝑜𝑙
Below is the data for heat capacity needed to calculate the energy balance for reactor and
jacket.
Components Cp in kJ/mol. K
CH3OH 0.0429
O2 0.0293
CH2O 0.0353
H2O 0.0336
H2 0.0291

Hence, the heat of capacity for each reaction are:

∆𝐶𝑝 = ∑ (𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑠) − ∑(𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑠)

∆𝐶𝑝 ∆𝐶𝑝
𝑘𝐽
∆𝐶𝑝1 = 0.0033
𝑚𝑜𝑙. 𝐾
𝑘𝐽
∆𝐶𝑝2 = 0.0215
𝑚𝑜𝑙. 𝐾
Hence, heat of reaction for each reaction at 423.15 K are:

𝜆[email protected] = -156530 kJ/mol + 0.0033 kJ/mol.K (423.15 K – 273.15 K) = -156529.51 kJ/mol

𝜆[email protected] = 85300 kJ/mol + 0.0215 kJ/mol.K (423.15 K-273.15 K) = 85303.23 kJ/mol Mole
Fraction of components:
Components Mole Fraction (Xi)
CH3OH 0.0725
 O2 0.0089
CH2O 0.4219
H2O 0.4419
H2 0.0548
Calculation for specific heat capacity of the mixture (Cpmix):

Cpmix = ∑ 𝑋𝑖 𝐶𝑝𝑖
Components Mole Fraction (Xi) Cpi Cpmix
CH3OH 0.0725 0.0429 0.0331
O2 0.0089 0.0293 0.0002
CH2O 0.4219 0.0353 0.0149
H2O 0.4419 0.0336 0.0148
H2 0.0548 0.0291 0.0016
Cpmix = 0.0646 kJ/mol.K
Volume of reactor 218.7643 m3
Volume of reactor (assuming 10% air spacing 0.3 * 218.7643 m3 = 65.63 m3
in reactor)
Overall volume of reactor 218.7643 m3 + 65.63 m3 = 284.39 m3
𝜋D2𝐿
Volume reactor, Vreactor =
4

L = 3D

Calculating for diameter of reactor,

𝜋D2𝐿
Vreactor=
4

Inserting L,

𝜋D2(3.0𝐷) 3𝜋D3
= = 284.39 𝑚
3
Vreactor=
4 4

D = 4.942 m

Calculating area, A:

4
2

A = x V = x 284.39 = 230.182 m
𝐷 4.942

Finding length of reactor,

L = 3D = 3 (4.942) = 14.826 m

Calculation for Jacket volume and flowrate:

Internal energy, U (W/m2.K) = 567.5 (Heating with Coils and Jackets | Spirax Sarco, n.d.)

Volume of reactor jacket, Vj = Vreactor x 10%

Vj = 284.39 m3 x 0.1 = 28.439 m3

Vj 28.439 m3
3
/hrs Fj = = = 1.2164 m
𝑡 23.38 ℎ𝑟𝑠

Then, finding for the reactor jacket specification,

Since it was designed to be fully jacketed, then the length of reactor jacket is equal to the
length of the reactor:

Lreactor jacket = Lreactor = 14.826 m

Thus, finding for the diameter of reactor jacket,

𝜋D2𝐿
Vreactor jacket =
4

28.439 m3 = 𝜋D2 (14.826)

4

Dj = 1.5628 m

Next, finding the area of the reactor jacket,

4
3
= 72.7899 m2
A = x Vj = x 28.439 m
𝐷𝑗 1.5628
 Temperature Profile for Reactor (T reactor)
1000
Temperature,
800 K
600
40C
CCC
200
0
0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3
Time, hr

Figure 3: Temperature Profile for Reactor

The following graph of reactor temperature against time is generated based on the
data iterated and recorded in the table above.

Figure 4: Temperature Profile for Jacket Reactor

The following graph of reactor jacket temperature against time is generated based on
the data iterated and recorded in the table above. According to (Sanhoob et al., 2012)
saturated water (coolant) is used to cool the reactor. The coolant enters the reactor at 480 K
and exit also at the same temperature but different phase.
 Figure 5: Temperature Profile for Reactor and Jacket

The temperature profile for both reactor and reactor jacket are plotted using the same
step size. According to the plotted graph above, the temperature for the reactor increases
exponentially while the temperature for the jacket appears to be decreasing slightly (a small
changes) throughout the process.

9. Summary of Reactor Design

Dimension of the Reactor

Parameter Design Value
Design Type Jacketed Plug Flow Reactor
Residence Time 23.38 hours
Volumetric Flowrate 9.3569 m3/hr
Volume of Reactor 218.7643 m3
Length 14.826 m
Diameter 1.5628 m
Heat Transfer Area 72.7899 m2
Method Used Euler Method

VI. CONCLUSIONS
Every chemical process has a reactor at its base, where chemical reactions take place
to convert feeds into products, and its design is an important part of the overall process
design. As the reactor to be developed, the plug flow reactor was selected. In this project’s
study, formaldehyde is to be produced through a catalytic vapor-phase oxidation reaction
involving methanol and oxygen. Furthermore, the chosen reactor must be able to provide the
desired yields and selectivity. As a result, for this reaction, a concentration profile is created.
A residence period of 23.38 hours is needed to get an 85.9967% conversion of methanol. The
concentration profile is iterated until the concentrations of all the components are constant.
The residence time may be used to calculate the volume of the reactor, yielding a result of
218.7643 m3. Furthermore, by obtaining the reactor and cooling jacket energy equations, the
temperature profile is investigated. The temperature in the reactor continues increase from
423.1K until 873.1K at takes around 0.2483 hour, whereas the temperature in the jacket
maintains constant at 480.9 K. To conclude, the calculations for establishing the working
volume for the plug flow reactor utilised to create formaldehyde were successfully completed
in this report.

VII. REFERENCES
Azevedo, D. E. (n.d.). Prentice Hall PTR International Series in the Physical and Chemical

Engineering Sciences.

Baber, A. A. (2018). Production of 66000 Tpy of Formaldehyde From Methanol Using Silver

Catalyst.

Heating with Coils and Jackets | Spirax Sarco. (n.d.). Retrieved February 4, 2022, from

https://www.spiraxsarco.com/learn-about-steam/steam-engineering-principles-and-

heattransfer/heating-with-coils-and-jackets

Sanhoob, M. A., Al-Sulami, A., Al-Shehri, F., & Al-Rasheedi, S. (2012). Production of

Formaldehyde from Methanol. King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals,

CHE495, 200.