A CFD Simulation Study of the Effect of Thermal Conductivity of the Catalyst Bed on Fischer-tropsch Synthesis

One of the most challenging technical barriers for fixed bed Fischer-Tropsch (FT) reactors is the formation of a hot spot in the catalyst bed because of the tremendous release of reaction heat. Increasing the thermal conductivity of the catalyst bed is a direct and efficient solution to solve this p...

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Main Authors: Jianqi Shen, Xinying Liu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AIDIC Servizi S.r.l. 2022-11-01
Series:Chemical Engineering Transactions
Online Access:https://www.cetjournal.it/index.php/cet/article/view/12879
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author Jianqi Shen
Xinying Liu
author_facet Jianqi Shen
Xinying Liu
author_sort Jianqi Shen
collection DOAJ
description One of the most challenging technical barriers for fixed bed Fischer-Tropsch (FT) reactors is the formation of a hot spot in the catalyst bed because of the tremendous release of reaction heat. Increasing the thermal conductivity of the catalyst bed is a direct and efficient solution to solve this problem. In this work, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were carried out to study the effect of the thermal conductivity of a catalyst bed on the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) fixed bed reactor. A reasonable constraint was defined for the temperature rise in the catalyst bed, in order to ensure system safety and stability of the catalyst for long-term operation. The catalyst activity and space velocity (SV) were modified in each simulation experiment to ensure the maximum temperature in the catalyst bed did not exceed the temperature rise constraint. The potential maximum productivity of the specific catalyst bed was then predicted and the optimized catalyst activity and SV were obtained, which provided valuable guidance for practical FTS applications. The results showed that by applying a catalyst bed with higher thermal conductivity, better temperature control of the system was achieved, and a higher FTS reaction rate in the catalyst was ensured, which resulted in higher heavier hydrocarbon productivity.
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spelling doaj.art-16c65233a6cf469983886ca7105675712022-12-22T03:45:18ZengAIDIC Servizi S.r.l.Chemical Engineering Transactions2283-92162022-11-019610.3303/CET2296032A CFD Simulation Study of the Effect of Thermal Conductivity of the Catalyst Bed on Fischer-tropsch SynthesisJianqi ShenXinying LiuOne of the most challenging technical barriers for fixed bed Fischer-Tropsch (FT) reactors is the formation of a hot spot in the catalyst bed because of the tremendous release of reaction heat. Increasing the thermal conductivity of the catalyst bed is a direct and efficient solution to solve this problem. In this work, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were carried out to study the effect of the thermal conductivity of a catalyst bed on the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) fixed bed reactor. A reasonable constraint was defined for the temperature rise in the catalyst bed, in order to ensure system safety and stability of the catalyst for long-term operation. The catalyst activity and space velocity (SV) were modified in each simulation experiment to ensure the maximum temperature in the catalyst bed did not exceed the temperature rise constraint. The potential maximum productivity of the specific catalyst bed was then predicted and the optimized catalyst activity and SV were obtained, which provided valuable guidance for practical FTS applications. The results showed that by applying a catalyst bed with higher thermal conductivity, better temperature control of the system was achieved, and a higher FTS reaction rate in the catalyst was ensured, which resulted in higher heavier hydrocarbon productivity.https://www.cetjournal.it/index.php/cet/article/view/12879
spellingShingle Jianqi Shen
Xinying Liu
A CFD Simulation Study of the Effect of Thermal Conductivity of the Catalyst Bed on Fischer-tropsch Synthesis
Chemical Engineering Transactions
title A CFD Simulation Study of the Effect of Thermal Conductivity of the Catalyst Bed on Fischer-tropsch Synthesis
title_full A CFD Simulation Study of the Effect of Thermal Conductivity of the Catalyst Bed on Fischer-tropsch Synthesis
title_fullStr A CFD Simulation Study of the Effect of Thermal Conductivity of the Catalyst Bed on Fischer-tropsch Synthesis
title_full_unstemmed A CFD Simulation Study of the Effect of Thermal Conductivity of the Catalyst Bed on Fischer-tropsch Synthesis
title_short A CFD Simulation Study of the Effect of Thermal Conductivity of the Catalyst Bed on Fischer-tropsch Synthesis
title_sort cfd simulation study of the effect of thermal conductivity of the catalyst bed on fischer tropsch synthesis
url https://www.cetjournal.it/index.php/cet/article/view/12879
work_keys_str_mv AT jianqishen acfdsimulationstudyoftheeffectofthermalconductivityofthecatalystbedonfischertropschsynthesis
AT xinyingliu acfdsimulationstudyoftheeffectofthermalconductivityofthecatalystbedonfischertropschsynthesis
AT jianqishen cfdsimulationstudyoftheeffectofthermalconductivityofthecatalystbedonfischertropschsynthesis
AT xinyingliu cfdsimulationstudyoftheeffectofthermalconductivityofthecatalystbedonfischertropschsynthesis