MODELING OF PROPYLENE OXIDATION IN A CIRCULATING FLUIDIZED-BED REACTOR

The performance of a circulating solids fluidized-bed riser reactor for the partial oxidation of propylene to acrolein has been analyzed using a detailed reaction engineering model. The model accounts for the complex interaction between gas-solid hydrodynamics, heat and mass transfer, and intrinsic kinetics using a core-annular model as the basis for the gas and solid phase flow patterns. Key hydrodynamic model parameters are obtained by interpretation of gas and solid tracer experiments under cold-flow conditions in a pilot-scale reactor. The model predictions give insight into the factors that affect the riser performance and demonstrate that it has potential as an alternate reactor type for the commercial scale production of acrolein.