How should one choose a reactor model?
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As the title suggests: In the petrochemical industry, there are many reactions (such as hydrorefining, catalytic cracking, hydrocracking, catalytic reforming, etc.) for which the reaction kinetics are unknown, or only the general formula for one type of reaction is known, and the components involved are complex. For such a reaction, how should the reactor model be chosen? Can it be simulated with Aspen Plus? I’m hoping experts in the petrochemical field using Aspen can provide an answer; thank you very much!
Why isn’t anyone answering? Experts in the petrochemical industry using Aspen, please give some advice. Thank you!
I’m not an expert, so I can only give a simple answer to this question. You want to carry out a full-scale simulation, right? If it’s just about reactor design, Aspen Plus isn’t sufficient; experience-based formulas and software like CFD are needed. The reasons are as follows: All kinetic data must be entered manually in Aspen, and for the last three kinetic models, they cannot be used if the kinetic data is unknown. A balance reactor is used to simulate the ideal situation when thermodynamic equilibrium is reached, but it’s difficult to achieve this in practice (Gibbs reactors have some special advantages, such as the ability to calculate the heat balance in three-phase reactions). Therefore, I think that if the conversion rate according to the general formula is known, the simplest reactor model – the yield reactor – is the best choice
Based on the known conditions and simulation objectives of the simulation, select modules in combination with their functions.
These devices involving complex reactions are best handled using Aspen’s RefSys
I also think that when it comes to the reaction part, using simulation software like Aspen can be quite troublesome
Let’s see which ones you already know and which ones are required
Software like Aspen HYSYS relies on external programming languages to handle reaction calculations, as it has very few built-in reactor models. Aspen is generally compiled using the Fortran language, while HYSYS is typically compiled using the C++ language
Yes. It is difficult to model it only by using Aspen Plus.
You can achieve your goal by combining other software, such as Hysis, with Aspen Plus.