Safety on reactor design

Safety is crucial aspect in designing reactors. Plug flow reactor is chosen for
production of methanol. The volume of the reactor is 1525 m 3 with 80% conversion. The
volume is quite big and dangerous to be handled. The reactor need to be operate with full of
safety. The operating temperature of this reactor is between 240C and 260C. The methanol
synthesis is exothermic and the maximum conversion is obtained at low temperature and high
pressure.

A challenge in the design of a methanol synthesis is to remove the heat of reaction

efficiently and economically - i.e. at high temperature - and at the same time to equilibrate the
synthesis reaction at low temperature, ensuring high conversion per pas. Since this reaction
highly exothermic the reactor must be attached with heat exchanger. The reactor needs to
stimulate with boiling water. This is for cooling of the reactor by circulating boiling water on
the shell side. By manipulating the pressure of the boiling water the reaction temperature can
be controlled and optimised. The failure of cooling system may be cause explosion. So the
heat exchanger must play a crucial role for operating of this reactor.

Besides that, pressure, level and temperature controllers need to be attached. The
pressure controller is to control the pressure of the reactor. Since this reaction is above
atmospheric pressure, pressure controller need to be placed. Temperature controller is to
control the temperature of gas entering the reactor and level controller is to prevent overflow
in the reactor. One effect of the adiabatic bed is to rapidly increase the inlet temperature to the
boiling water part. This ensures optimum use of this relatively expensive unit, as the tubes are
now used only for removal of reaction heat, not for preheat of the feed gas. The advantages of
the plug flow reactor is its operate at steady state and large heat transfer areas can be
installed.

HEALTH AND ENVIRMENTAL ASPACT :

The environment has emerged as an important determinant of the performance of the modern
chemical industry. Good reactor performance is of paramount importance in determining the
economic viability of the overall design and fundamentally important to the environmental impact of
the process.

Emissions from industries and manufacturing activities such as in factories and power plants which
release carbon monoxide and chemicals into the air leads to major cause of pollution and is very
difficult to manage. There are several environmental issues such as climate change, water pollution,
Air pollution and renewable energy.

Air poulltuion for example have a lot of affects, when an air pollutant, such as sulfuric acid, combines
with the water droplets that make up clouds, the water droplets become acidic, forming acid rain. This
can kill trees and harm animals and other wildlife. Rain can carry and deposit the nitrogen in some
pollutants on rivers and soils. This will affect the nutrients in the soil and water bodies. High air
pollution levels can cause immediate health problems: aggravated cardiovascular and respiratory
illness,added stress to heart and lungs, which must work harder to supply the body with oxygen and
damaged cells in the respiratory system.

When we try to design reactor we have to be carefull with the substance for example many fuels
contain impurities like sulfur andheavy metals which if released into the atmosphere are also serious
pollutants also Carbon monoxide during incomplete combustion is also ahazard since carbon
monoxide bonds to the red blood cell faster than oxygen and this is what causes suffocation and death.
Morover, always try to use chemicals that have less environmental impact for exapmel CFCs used to
be used to create and moldpolystyrene (foam containers for fast food) but this gas eats away at ozone
cause serious thinningof the ozone layer letting UV radiation getthrough. Now carbon dioxide is used
which is safer, not flammable but does still contribute togreenhouse gases. Another thing is to
catalysts to increase reaction efficiency since Catalysts make a chemical reaction occur faster without
being consumed in the reaction and can be reused in the manufacturing process also can eliminate
steps in the manufacturing process.

In parallel, chemists and petrochemists are now researching new methods that are more sustainable
and environmentally friendly while maintaining the development of our economy and our industry.
Examples include:

Biofuels: transportation fuel derived from biomass. A wide range of biomass products such as
sugar cane, rapeseed, corn, straw, wood, animal and agriculture residues and waste can be transformed
into fuels for transport;

Bioplastics: production of plastic materials using natural sources such as plants, which are
then biodegradable;

Insulation: enhanced insulating materials to enable more energy-efficient homes and

buildings;

Lightweight plastic composites which help reduce cars and airplanes fuel consumption;

Society tends to consider every man-made chemical as bad and everything natural as good. Just
because something is natural does not automatically make it good for the health or the environment
or unsafe if its a man-made chemical. What looks more natural than burning wood in on open fire for
instance? In reality, smoke from open burning can be harmful to both human health and the
environment like other combustion processes.

Stirred Chemical Laboratory, Pilot Plant Reactors, CSTRs, Autoclaves and fixed bed reactors,
www.pdc machines.com/Benefit_SR.htm, accessed in May 2007.

K. C. Waugh, Methanol Synthesis, Catal. Letters, vol. 142, no. 10, pp. 11531166, Sep.
2012.
J.-P. Lange, Methanol synthesis: a short review of technology improvements, Catal. Today, vol. 64,
no. 12, pp. 38, Jan. 2001.