Analysis and Validation of Chemical Reactors performance models developed in a commercial software platform

Selection of suitable reactor type and design parameters is often a key aspect for developing andoptimizing chemical process system. In this report, the theory of selected reactors, Plug Flow Reactor(PFR) and Continuous Stirred Tank Reactor (CSTR), is presented and their mathematical models arederived, these models are used to verify the simulation results from a commercial software platform. Thisthesis reports the investigation of aspects of reactor performance and describes the procedure ofverification of mass and energy flows for selected reactors. A case study has been performed to achievethis in COMSOL Multiphysics’ Chemical Engineering platform. The study is based on the production ofacetic acid through hydrolysis of acetic anhydride. An analysis of the parameter’s effect on the steady stateconversion is performed on the PFR and CSTR.The results from the case study show that, for both reactors, change in inlet composition has a directeffect on productivity of the reactors. For the PFR it has high conversion as compared to CSTR but notgood control on temperature stability and also showed high parametric sensitivity. CSTR shows the goodcontrollability and feasible operation for a selective kinetics available for the case study. Selected resultsare verified against the benchmark solutions and shows good agreement in the computer simulation.This report is only focusing on selected parameter’s effect on performance of chemical reactors. Otherparameters includes safety, environmental acceptability, acceptable flexibility to feedstock quality, capacityto handle large variations in throughput, maximum selectivity to desired products and minimum waste production, constant product quality, capital and operating costs etc. can also be studied to make an extensive guidelines for reactor selection