Distillation with Chemical Reaction
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DISTILLATION WITH CHEMICAL REACTION:. ESTERIFICATION IN A PACKED COLUMN A thesis submitted to the University of London for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by PETER ARISTOCLES PILAVAKIS, M.Sc., D.I.C. Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemical Technology, Imperial College of Science and Technology, London. February 1974 ABSTRACT A theoretical and experimental study was conducted of the esterification of methanol and acetic acid in a packed distillation column.. The investigation was divided into two parts dealing respectively with the equilibrium data and the distillation-reaction process. The isobaric vapour-liquid equilibrium data were determined experimentally for the binary, ternary and quaternary systems for which no data were available in literature. Cathala's ebulliometer was used for this purpose. The Margules equations in combination with Marek's equations, to take into consideration the nonideality of acetic acid, were used to correlate the equilibrium data for the quaternary system. In the process investigation part experiments were carried out in a distillation reaction column and compared with theoretical predictions. The latter were obtained from mathematical description of the steady-state operation of the process and'i€ consisted of the integration of differential equations obtained from combination of the mass and heat balances of the reacting system with the kinetic equations of reaction and mass transfer under distillation conditions. The model was employed to predict the performance of the column under different operating conditions which had not been examined experiment- ally. For design purposes a calculation procedure was developed to determine the column height under different operating conditions. To my family 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to express my deep gratitude to Dr. H. Sawistowski who kindly undertook to direct my thesis. His enthusiasm, constant advice and unfailing moral support were vital, throughout this period of study. I would also like to thank Mr. W. Meneer whose-help was most appreciated; the departmental glassblowers for their suggestions and assistance; the workshop, particularly Mr. J. Maggs who helped to install the column. My thanks are also due to the Greek Ministry of Coordination for the awarding of a N.A.T.O. scholarship covering the entire period of research. 5 CONTENTS page ABSTRACT 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 4 INTRODUCTION 6 PART I. VAPOUR LIQUID EQUILIBRIUM DATA - Chapter 1. ,Literature survey 9 2. Experimental 28 3. Correlation and testing of equilibrium data 35 PART II. DISTILLATION WITH CHEMICAL REACTION Chapter 4. Literature survey 49 5. Modelling of the process 59 6. Experimental 81 7. Results and discussion 95 8. Conclusions 124 Appendix A. Purity of substances 126 B.1 Vapour liquid equilibrium data 129 B.2 Computer programme flow chart 144: C. Physical properties and column characteristics 146' D.1 Experimental results of 3 inch column 159 D.2 Predicted performance of a 3 inch packed column of 92 cm height 179 D.3'--Predicted performance and height determination of a 3 inch packed column 182 • D.4 Computer programme flow chart and listing 183 E. Nomenclature 214 F. Bibliography .220 6 INTRODUCTION Chemical reaction with simultaneous distillation in a column is an operation of particular interest. Two processes are carried out • in a single unit as a result of which capital and operating costs are considerably lowered. Furthermore, removal.of the reaction product, if it is the less volatile component, increases overall conversion and diminishes the formation of by-products. Distillation conditions also produce higher temperatures which speed up the chemical reaction. Higher temperatures however suffer from the disadvantage that they may lead to the enhancing of side reactions. The suitability of such a process therefore cannot be assessed beforehand and each chemical reaction considered must be examined individually. The practical evaluation of a process of distillation with chemical reaction requires the formulation of a model which will describe the complete operation of the column. The model should be able to predict the overall conversion, the column height and the top product compositions. For this purpose data on the vapour-liquid equilibria- of the multicomponent system must be available. Information on the kinetics and mass transfer of the process has also to be known. The present research was devoted to the experimental and theoretical study of the esterification of methanol and acetic acid in a packed column. A theoretical model was postulated for the steady state operation of the reacting process under distillation conditions. Kinetic data were available in literature, but isobaric vapour-liquid equilibria were not comprehensive and had to be deter- mined in the laboratory. The overall vapour mass transfer coefficients had also to be obtained experimentally. 7 The adequacy of the model was confirmed by experimental results and the model was applied to predict the effect of different operating variables on the performance of a fixed length column. Finally,for design purposes a procedure, using the theoretical model, was developed to establish column height for different operating conditions. PART I VAPOUR-LIQUID EQUILIBRIUM DATA 9 CHAPTER 1 LITERATURE SURVEY 1.1 Experimental determination of vapour-liquid equilibrium There are only few systems which obey Raoult's and Dalton's law, and equilibrium relations' predicted from purely theoretical considerations are not always correct. Themostdirectand,accurate method for the determination of vapour-liquid equilibria is by experi- mentation in a suitable still. The principle of the experimental method is the separation of the liquid and vapour phases which are at equilib- rium followed by analysis of their respective concentrations. Five major techniques exist for the determination of equilib- rium data: (1) Distillation method (2) Circulation method (3) Static method (4) Dew and bubble point method (5) Flow method The data may be determined under isothermal or isobaric conditions. (1) Distillation method This is the oldest technique but is now seldomused4 . A large amount of well-stirred liquid is contained in a boiling flask and the vapour produced is considered to be in equilibrium with the liquid phase. (2) Circulation method There are two types of circulation stills relying respectively on (a) circulation of the vapour phase, and (b) circulation of both the vapour and liquid phases. The first still of the former type which produced satisfactory 10 results was due to Othmer (69). Since then the Othmer still has been improved and modified by a number of workers and the details are summarised by Hala (35). In this method the vapour produced in the reboiler is condensed into a receiver. Once the receiver is full the additional condensate returns back over a weir to the reboiler. It.is desirable that the condenser be positioned in such a way as to avoid subcooling of the condensate. This also minimises any possibility of gas dissolving in the condensate (modification of Othmer still). For systems of low relative volatility a two plate still has been devised (13). This produces an increased difference between the composition of the liquid in the reboiler and the vapour on the second plate, which gives a more accurate calculation of the relative volatility using the Fenske equation: Y1 x2 a = 12 Y2 xl where a is the relative volatility, x and x are the mole fractions 12 1 2 of components 1 and 2 respectively in the boiling flask, yl and y2 are the mole fractions of components 1 and 2 on the second plate. The circulation of both the vapour and liquid phases is obtained by incorporation into the apparatus of a Cottrell pump. In this device vapour and liquid slugs are entrained and thrown on to a thermometer well, the temperature thus measured corresponding to the true boiling point of the mixture. The heterogeneous mixture enters a separator. where the vapour is separated allowing the liquid to flow back to the reboiler. The vapour is condensed and collected in a receiver from which the excess condensate returns through an overflow to the boiling flask. The first still of this category which gave accurate results was described by Gillespie (32). Since then details of further improvements have been published, as summarised by Hala (35). (3) Static method In this method the liquid mixture is put into a closed and evacuated vessel, which is immersed in a thermostat. The vessel is shaken until equilibrium is attained between the liquid and vapour phases. Samples are then taken from both phases and analysed. At low pressure the amount of vapour required for analysis is of the same order of magnitude as the total amount of the vapour phase, so that removal of a sample causes a marked disturbance of the equilibrium. This method is of particular interest when operation is desirable at high pressures, mainly if the temperature is in the vicinity of the critical point of one of the constituents. Densities of the liquid and vapour phase near the critical point are similar and by using the circulation method, droplets of liquid may easily be entrained in the outlet vapour. (4) Dew and bubble point method It is possible to obtain the vapour-liquid equilibrium curves by using mixtures of constant composition at constant temperature and varying the pressure. The equilibrium vessel is immersed in a thermostat in which a vapour mixture is compressed. The pressure at which conden- sation begins and ends is observed. The liquid mixture in the equilib- rium chamber is then replaced, and experiments repeated until the complete range of the P vs x,y equilibrium curve is covered. The advantage of this method is that no liquid and vapour samples are required for analysis, and thus the consumption of materials is minimal. The disadvantage is that it cannot be used for the determination of mixtures of more than two components. 12 (5) Flow method In this method the equilibrium chamber is supplied by continuous streams of the components at constant concentrations either in liquid phase or in vapour phase or in a combination of the two phases.