ChEE420/520:ChemicalReactionEngineering

HW4(IndividualAssignment)
Instructor:A.Sorooshian
Due:10/6/16
1. Alkylated cyclohexanols are important intermediates in the fragrance and
perfume industry [if interested, refer to: Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., 28, 693
(1989)]. Past work has focused on gas-phase catalyzed hydrogenation of
o-cresol to 2-methylcyclohexanone, which is then hydrogenated to 2methylcyclohexanol. In this problem we focus on only the first step in the
reaction. The reaction on a nickel-silica catalyst was found to be zeroorder in o-cresol and first-order in hydrogen with a specific reaction rate
at 170C of 1.68 mol of o-cresol/(kg catminatm). The reaction mixture
enters the packed bed reactor at a total pressure of 5 atm. The molar feed
consists of 67% H2 and 33% o-cresol at a total molar flow rate of 39.8
mol/min.

a. Neglecting pressure drop, plot the rate of reaction of o-cresol and the
concentrations of each species as a function of catalyst weight. What is
the ratio of catalyst weight needed to achieve the last 5% conversion to
the weight necessary to achieve the first 5% conversion (0 to 5%) in the
plug flow reactor?
b. Accounting for pressure drop in the packed bed using a value of = 0.34
kg-1, re-do part (a) along with a plot of pressure versus catalyst weight.
c. Another engineer suggests that instead of changing catalyst size it would
be better to pack the catalyst in a shorter reactor with twice the pipe
diameter. If all other conditions remain the same, is this suggestion
better?
IMPORTANT NOTES
This is not a trivial assignment and it should not be put off until the day
before the due date.
If you are unfamiliar with how to use software packages such as Matlab that can be used to solve
simultaneous ODEs, please speak to the TA. A D2L Dropbox folder has been set up if it is easier
for you to submit any type of file(s) that shows results/plots rather than having to print it out
(Note on your hard copy HW that you submitted files to the Dropbox on the front page). Show
all work leading to any plots/tables you present. If you submit electronic files, annotate both the
HW you turn in and/or the files sufficiently well to allow for reproducibility of your work; for
example, a column of values in Excel without an equation and cell references to cells used for
the calculations is not sufficient in hard copy format, but sufficient if you submit an electronic
1

file. For plots, label all axes, curves, and provide titles explaining what you are showing. Report
units in your results/plots.
Since the due date is after Exam 1, it is your responsibility to make sure your set-up work (i.e.,
governing equations) is correct as you will be responsible for that material on Exam 1; the
extended due date is to provide you more time to conduct the Matlab analysis. You can check on
your set up work with the TA.
Extra Problem For Practice (Do not turn this in)
1. Unsteady State CSTRs Start Up. Consider the following reactor network scheme, A liquid
reactant stream passes through two CSTR units in series of the same volume V. If the reaction is
First Order with respect to A (same kinetics in both reactors) or rA = -kCA

where Q is the inlet flow rate, k is the reaction rate constant, CAi(t) is the inlet
concentration, CA0 is the initial reactor concentration inside both reactors, CA1(t), is the
concentration of reactant in the first reactor and , CA2(t), is the concentration of reactant
in the second reactor and V is the reactor volume (the same volume in both reactors) and =V/Q
is the mean residence time
(a) Perform a material balance on each reactor and find the governing equations that
describe their behavior.
(b) Solve the 2 resulting differential concentration equations for CA1(t) and CA2(t) as
a function of time with the initial conditions at time = 0, CA1 = CA2 = CA0 = 0