Isobutylene synthesis from hydrogen lean syngas in slurry and trickle bed reactors
Conference
·
OSTI ID:254849
- Texas A&M Univ., College Station, TX (United States)
Due to environmental regulations, new gasoline formulations will be introduced to the market in the coming decade to reduce automobile exhaust emissions of CO, nitrous oxides and photoreactive unburned hydrocarbons. Addition of oxygenates such as methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) to new formulations is necessary to maintain an acceptable octane number required for modem automobiles. The production of MTBE is currently limited by the supply of isobutylene. We and other groups have recently reported data on selective formation of isobutylene from hydrogen lean synthesis gas (isosynthesis) in fixed beds over catalysts based on zirconia in the temperature range 573-723 K and the pressure range 0.5-100 atm. All the studies in the literature on isosynthesis have been conducted in gas-solid fixed bed reactors. Using a three phase gas-oil-catalyst slurry or trickle bed reactor for isosynthesis can have certain advantages. Continuous circulation of the oil phase may enable separation of light components from the heavy components (C{sub 5}{sup +} which are produced by the reaction) at the gas oil separator. The heavy components can be circulated back to the reactor dissolved in the oil and further converted into light hydrocarbons. The CO/H{sub 2} ratio in the oil phase may also be quiet different than the CO/H{sub 2} ratio in the feed gas due to the differences in Henry`s Law Constants for hydrogen and carbon monoxide which may affect the product distribution. The reaction can be run in the absence of mass transfer limitations in a slurry reactor. There is evidence in the literature that isosynthesis reactions become controlled by external mass transfer at temperatures above 723 K. Other advantages for the slurry reactor include better temperature control and low capital costs as opposed to fixed bed reactors. In this study, we report the results of experiments on isosynthesis conducted in a laboratory scale slurry reactor and a trickle bed reactor.
- OSTI ID:
- 254849
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-940813--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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