Some insights on determining the operating parameters of the RadFrac tower

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The following are some of my relatively basic insights; please forgive me if I’m not sophisticated enough. Once all the design specifications for a tower are determined (such as the theoretical stage number, plate efficiency, feed and product positions, the type of total condenser and reboiler, chemical reactions, etc.), there can be two independent parameters for that tower (with many possible combinations). Different people have different preferences, and I choose the reboiler power and reflux ratio as the independent operating parameters. The determination of the initial values for these two parameters is crucial for choosing the tower calculation method and ensuring convergence, yet it is difficult to obtain relatively accurate initial values. The case with two “variables” and two “specific values” is even less likely to converge. The following uses the example of reactive distillation (RD) to illustrate a simple and feasible method. For: acid + alcohol — ester + water, this is a fairly well-established example of RD. When the boiling point of the ester is higher than that of the other three components, a high-purity ester can be obtained at the bottom of the tower. 1) Since the purification of the product is a distillation process, a smaller reflux ratio is used ； Therefore, if the reboiler power is too high, the yield will decrease; hence, a lower power level should be used ； 2) Keep the power constant. When the reflux ratio is too low, insufficient contact occurs and the yield decreases; trial and error can then be used to find the optimal reflux ratio. 3) Set the aforementioned optimal reflux ratio, and use a \"variable\" along with a \"specific value\" to determine the optimal power level