Catalytic dehydration of ethanol into ethylene in a tubular reactor of the pilot installation on alumina catalysts with varied grain size

Аннотация

Synthesis of ethylene on trefoil and cylindrical experimental acid-modified aluminum oxide samples was studied under an ethanol (94%) gas load of 920–2200 h^–1 and heat-carrier temperature of 400–440°C. In the conditions of a 98% ethanol conversion, the higher activity of the trefoil made it possible to reduce the height of the bed and its hydraulic resistance and, accordingly, raise the specific catalyst throughput for ethylene. Compared with industrial aluminum oxide, the throughput of 1 g of the catalyst for ethylene on experimental samples is higher by 2.5–6.5 kg yr^–1, and the specific expenditure of ethanol is lower by 0.22–0.23 kg kg^–1. The endothermic process in a tubular reactor is characterized by a high parametric sensitivity of the average integral temperature along the catalyst bed, with the average temperature being higher on the less active catalyst. Thus, the higher average temperature can compensate for the lower activity of the catalyst without additional increase in the contact duration and(or) heat-carrier temperature.