G/L Reactions on Solid Catalysts: Trickle Beds, Slurry
Reactors, and Three-Phase Fluidized Beds
Gas-liquid-solid three-phase reactions are of great importance
in chemical, petrochemical and biochemical processing and are
carried out in various types of reactors.
1) Packed bed of solids 2) Suspended solids
They can be run in a number of ways.
The packed bed contactors use large solid particles
The slurry reactors use very fine suspended solids
The fluidized bed can use either depending on the flow
rates
Various ways of running G/L reactions catalyzed by solids.
1) Packed bed reactor
Packed bed Flow regimes: trickling, bubbly, spray and
pulsing
Trickle bed reactors
Trickle bed reactors (TBRs)
are gas–liquid–solid contacting devices used in
many diverse fields such as petroleum,
petrochemical, fine chemicals, and biochemical
industries.
The word “TRICKLE” itself describes its operational
characteristics in which liquid intermittently flows
over the solid catalyst in the form of films or
rivulets or droplets.
Trickle bed reactors are a class of packed bed reactors where chemical reaction
occurs through gravity-assisted flow through a packing medium.
Regarded as the simplest type of packed bed reactor, it allows contact to solid,
liquid and gas that is passed through the column.
Trickle bed reactors comprise a family of reactors in which gas and liquid phase
reactants flow in downward direction over a bed of solid catalyst particles.
The gas phase may flow in upward or downward direction depending on the type
of application. The liquid phase, however, always flows or “trickles” over the
solid catalyst in a downward direction.
Bubbly flow is characterized by gas bubbles dispersed
throughout the continuous liquid phase and features low level
of phase mixing.
Trickle flow also has low mixing but is characterized by the liquid
phase flowing down over the packed bed as a falling film.
Various ways of running G/L reactions catalyzed by
solids.
2) Suspended Particles : a) Agitated slurry reactor, b) slurry
column, c) three phase fluidized bed
Slurry reactors are similar to fluidized-bed reactors, but in a slurry reactor the
catalyst is suspended in a liquid, whereas in a fluidized bed the suspending fluid is
the reacting gas itself.
Slurry bubble reactors are a version of the fluidized bed reactors, however, in a
three-phase system, that is the catalyst is suspended in a liquid through which the
feed gas is bubbled
THE GENERAL RATE EQUATION
Consider the following reaction and stoichiometry
Gas reactant must first dissolve in the L, then both reactants must
diffuse or move to the catalyst surface for reaction to occur.
Thus the resistance to transfer across the G/L interface and then to the
surface of solid both enter the general rate expression.
Graphically we show the resistances as in Fig. 22.2
G/L reaction on a catalyst surface-General rate equations