Chemical Reaction Engineering

Che 416 Course outline

- Classification and types of reactors.
Methods of operation and design
equations.
- Temperature stability of the reactors.
- Optimization of yield.
- Departures from plug, mixing and RTD.
- Fluid-solid reaction
- mass transfer in chemical reactions and
reaction \- in porous solids.
- Fixed and fluidized reactor design.
- Catalyst deactivation.

Introduction

Types of reactors
Batch (ideal batch and semi batch)
Tubular
Plug flow
CSTR
Catalytic
Biological reactors
Fluidized or fixed catalytic bed
reactors

Types of reactions
Combination- formation of ammonia,
substitution formation of
trichloromethane, decompositionfractional distillation of petroleum
and coke, isomerization- thalidomide,
esterification, hydrolysis,
hydrogenation etc.

 Chemical reactors are vessels designed for

chemical reactions. They are sites for
conversion of raw materials into products. A
reactor is the heart of a chemical process. To
design a chemical reactor where bulk
products would be synthesized for
commercial purposes, multiple aspects of
chemical engineering would have to be
interrelated. Since it is a very vital step in
the overall design of a process, designers
thus, ensure that the reaction proceeds with
the highest efficiency towards the desired
output, producing the highest yield of
product in the most cost effective way.

 Classification of chemical reactions

Chemical rxns can be classified based on the
Following:
i. Mechanism of reaction
ii. Order and molecularity
iii. No. of phases present or phase grouping
iv. Operating conditions
v. Inclusion of foreign substances
vi. Thermal influence on the reaction
vii.Energy regime

A simple reversible reaction is one in which

the
products recombine to form the starting
material and
vice - versa depending on the position of
equilibrium.
In the reaction below, we could promote
the forward
rxn or backward rxn by enhancing further
dissociation
of iodide at increased temperatures or
reduced

Series rxns:
A
Parallel rxns:

B + C
A
D + E
NOTE:
In both cases, all species can be
isolated for
identification.

Characteristics of complex rxns

- The overall reaction is the sum of the individual reaction stages
/ elementary rxns
- Intermediate processes occur which are characterized by free
radicals
Sub classes of complex rxns
(i) open sequence: thermal decomposition of N2O5
N2O5
NO2 + NO3
NO3 + NO2
NO + O2 + NO2
NO + N2O5
2NO2
(ii) Closed sequence: thermal decomposition of acetaldehyde
a. CH3CHO
CH3 + CHO
b. HCO
CO
+ H
c.
H + CH3CHO
H2 + CH3CO
d.
CH3CO
CO + CH3
e.
CH3 + CH3CHO
CH4 + CH3CO
f.
CH3 + CH3
C2H6

 Reaction mechanism
This refers to the series of steps or the means b
which the reaction occurred. i.e. the how of
the process through which the reactants
combine to form the products.
(i) Simple irreversible reaction
Considering the simple reaction below
A
B
(ii) Simple irreversible rxns (no side rxns)
A +B
C+D

However, one can distinguish the processes

found in the chain rxns:
Initiation (a) monomolecular decomposition
of
CH3CHO
Transformation (b & c) where the free radical
(
HCO) changes identity and becomes CH3CO
Propagation (d & e) which can repeat
Indefinitely
Termination (f) here, two methyl radicals
combine to yield ethane

 Order and molecularity:

The power to which a concentration term is
raised in a given rate expression gives the
order of the reaction while molecularity refers
to the number of distinct chemical species,
molecules or ions participating in the rate
controlling stage, or form new bonds/ suffer
cleavage of old bonds during the rate step
e.g. A + B
C
implies, order
=2
and molecularity = 2 but in the rxn below
A
B + C
order = 1,
molecularity
=2

 Note:
While the order or a rxn is empirical, the
molecularity
of a rxn is based on the rxn mechanism
and thus,
dependent on the stoichiometry of the rate
determining step
Phase grouping: Homogenous,
Heterogenous; single & multiphase, solid,
liquid gas etc