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CHE 314

Chemical Reaction Engineering


Lecture 2
Mole Balances
Fall 2015

Slides adapted from Foglers PowerPoint slides

Outline:
Reaction Rates
General Mole Balance Equation
Batch Reactor (BR)
Continuously Stirred Tank Reactor (CSTR)
Plug Flow Reactor (PFR)
Packed Bed Reactor (PBR)

Chemical Identity
For all our chemical reactions/processes mass and moles
will be conserved
We are transforming chemical species to other chemical
species.
Molecules change their chemical identity during a
chemical reaction.
The identity of a chemical species is determined by the
kind, number, and configuration of that species atoms.
1. Decomposition
2. Combination
3. Isomerization
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CH3CH3 H2 + H2C=CH2
N2 + O2 2 NO

Reaction Rate
A mole balance will be used to keep track of the number of
moles of each species in the reactor as a function of time.
Concept of a rate of reaction
The rate of reaction of species j, rj, is the number of moles
of A reacting per unit time per unit volume (e.g. mol/dm3/s).

:
.


:
.

Reaction Rate (contd)


The rate equation/term will sometimes have a different
basis
Heterogeneous catalysis

:
.


:
.

(molj/gcat/s)
(molj/m2cat/s)

Rates are expressed as the rate of disappearance of a


reactant species or the rate of formation of a product
species.
- sign denotes species consumption.
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General Mole Balance Equation


System
Volume, V

Fj0

Gj

Fj

Molar Flow Molar Flow Molar Rate Molar Rate


+ Generation = Accumulation
Rate of
Rate of

Species j in Species j out of Species j of Species j


dN j

+
=
Fj
Gj
Fj 0
dt
mole
mole
mole
mole

time
time
time
time

General Mole Balance Equation (contd)


If spatially uniform:

G j = r jV
=

If NOT spatially uniform:

V1

rj1
G j1 = rj1V1
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V2

rj 2
G j 2 = rj 2 V2

General Mole Balance Equation (contd)


General Mole Balance on System Volume V:

In Out + Generation = Accumulation


dN j
+ rj dV
=
Fj 0 Fj
dt
If uniform distribution:

Fj 0 Fj
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+ rj V

dN j
dt

Batch Reactor Mole Balance


Batch

F j 0 F j + rj dV =
Fj 0 = Fj = 0

Well-Mixed

r dV
j

dN j
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dt

dN j
dt

Batch reactor with single


external cooling jacket
Source: Wikipedia

= r jV
= rjV

Batch Reactor Mole Balance (contd)


Time necessary to reduce the number of moles of j
from Nj0 to Nj.
dN j
Rearranging:
dt =
rjV
Integrating:

t = 0 N j = N j0
t =t Nj = Nj

NA

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N j0

t=

Nj

dN j
rjV

CSTR Reactor Mole Balance


CSTR

F j 0 F j + rj dV =

Steady-State:

dN j
dt

Well Mixed:
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dN j
dt

V=

=0

r dV = r V
j

Fj 0 Fj
rj

V is the CSTR volume needed to


reduce the entering flowrate of
species j (Fj0) to the exit flowrate
of species j (Fj)

Plug Flow Reactor Mole Balance

Sulzer Mixer Reactor (SMR) post-polymerization reactor for polystyrene


Special mixing design for better plug flow behaviour

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https://www.sulzer.com/en/Products-and-Services/Process-Technology/Polymer-Production-Technology/Other-Polymer-Applications/Polymer-Reaction-Technology

Plug Flow Reactor Mole Balance


(steady-state)
In a plug flow reactor the composition of the fluid varies from point to point along a flow
path; consequently, the material balance for a reaction component must be made for a
differential element of volume V.
V

Fj

Fj
V

V + V

V + V

In Out
Generation
at V at V + V + in V
= 0



steady state
Fj
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Fj

V + V

rj V

=0

Plug Flow Reactor Mole Balance


(steady-state) (contd)
Rearrange and take limit as V 0

lim

V 0

Fj

V + V

Fj

dF j

= rj

dV

= rj

Volume necessary to reduce the entering molar flow rate


(mol/s) from Fj0 to the exit molar flow rate of Fj:
Fj

V =

Fj 0
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dF j
rj

Packed-Bed Reactor Mole Balance


(steady-state)
W
Fj

Fj

W + W

Fj

lim

W 0

Fj

Fj

W + W

W + W

+ rj' W

Fj

W + W

steady state

dF j

= rj

dW

= rj'

PBR catalyst weight necessary to reduce the entering molar flow


Fj
rate Fj0 to molar flow rate Fj:
dF

W =

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Fj 0

rj'

Reactor Mole Balances Summary


Reactor
Batch

Differential

PBR

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V=

dFA
= rA
dV

dFA
= rA
dW

Integral

t=

dN A
= rAV
dt

CSTR
PFR

Algebraic

NA

dN A
N rAV
A0

FA 0 FA
rA
FA

dFA
V=
rA
FA 0
W=

FA

FA 0

dFA
rA

NA
t
FA
V
FA
W

Batch Reactors
Advantages:
- Simple operation
- High conversion can be reached
Disadvantage:
- High operating cost
- Temperature control difficult
- Non steady-state (not continuous)
- Batch-to-batch variations
Applied to:
- Small scale testing
- Manufacture of expensive products
- Testing new proceses
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CSTR Reactors
Advantages:
- Intense agitation
- Good temperature control
- Steady-state, continuous large production scale
Disadvantage:
- Lowest conversion of all reactor types (hence large
volume reactors needed.
Applied to:
- A variety of reaction types
- Very common for liquid-phase reactions

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Tubular/Plug Flow Reactors


Advantages:
- Easy to maintain (no moving part)
- Highest conversion per volume of the reactors
- Steady-state, continuous large production scale
Disadvantage:
- Fouling, plugging
- Temperature control (variation in location), hot spot, non
uniform
Applied to:
- A variety of reaction types
- Very common for gas-phase reactions
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Practice Problem (P1-15)


The reaction

AB
is to be carried out isothermally in a continuous flow reactor.

1) Calculate both the CSTR and PFR reactor volumes necessary


to consume 99% of A (i.e. CA = 0.01 CA0) when the entering
molar flow rate is 5 mol/h, assuming the reaction rate rA is:
-rA = k CA

with k = 0.0001 s-1

2) Repeat the question to calculate the time necessary to


consume 99.9% of species A in a 1000 dm3 constant volume
batch reactor with CA0 = 0.5 mol/dm3.
Additional data: entering volumetric flow rate is 10 dm3/h
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