Hydrodynamics of Trickle Bed Reactors with Catalyst Support Particle Size Distributions

Characterization of the hydrodynamics enables operation of trickle bed reactors within the desired flow regime and under conditions for uniform distribution of gas and liquid, resulting in an essentially plug flow contacting pattern. Studies reported in the literature are typically restricted to sys...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Industrial & engineering chemistry research 2014-06, Vol.53 (22), p.9027-9034
Main Authors: Honda, Gregory S, Gase, Philip, Hickman, Daniel A, Varma, Arvind
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Catalysts
Computational fluid dynamics
Fluid flow
Hydrodynamics
Liquids
Particle size distribution
Pressure drop
Reactors
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Summary:Characterization of the hydrodynamics enables operation of trickle bed reactors within the desired flow regime and under conditions for uniform distribution of gas and liquid, resulting in an essentially plug flow contacting pattern. Studies reported in the literature are typically restricted to systems of beds packed with catalyst supports of a uniform size. This work addresses the impact of supports with particle size distributions on reactor hydrodynamics. An experimental database of pressure drop and liquid holdup was developed and, by careful definition of the particle diameter, literature models were adapted to account for the particle size distribution. The resulting models give improved predictions for packing media with a particle size distribution while maintaining applicability to uniform systems.
ISSN:0888-5885
1520-5045
DOI:10.1021/ie403491x