72

Reactor Design
Reactor Chemistry
Folowing are key Hydrotreating and Hydrocracking reactions

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Actually reaction chemistry doesnt ends here. Following figure shows the extent of
hydroracking reactions.

Catalyst selection
Reactor Design

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Hydrocracking catalysts are dual functional, (having metallic and acidic sites) promoting
cracking and hydrogenation reactions

Acidic Support

Metallic Support

Cracking Function is provided by this support

Hydrogenation Function is
provided by this support

1. Amorphous Oxides (Silica-Alumina)

2. Crystalline Zeolite
(Y-Zeolite)
3. Mixture of Both

2. Base Metals
(Group VIII A: Cobalt , Nickel)
(Group VI A: Molybdenum, Tungsten)
Metal Sulfides (NiS,
WS2)

Ni-Mo,Co-Mo, MoS2,

2. Noble Metals
(Pt , Pd )
Amorphous Silica-Alumina

Zeolite Catalyst

Amorphous -alumina is also widely applied

due to its mechanical and thermal stability and
porous structure

Zeolites have large concentration of acid sites which

enhances their hydrocracking activity

Have large pores which permit bulky feed stock Zeolites also need lower temperatures to achieve a
molecules to acidic sites
specified conversion
Have Moderate activity and makes metal-acid
balance

minimizes coke formation and improves catalyst

stability

Based on above features and our chemistry we selected zeolite bed for hydrocracking
reactor and amorphous for hydrotreating reactor. And for Metalic sites Ni-Mo catalyst.
Catalyst specs are as folows

Catalyst Shape

Surface Area (m2/g)

Reactor Design

Cylindrical (1/8 Nominal Dia)

150 or more

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Pore volume (ml/g)

0.6 - 1

Average Pore Radius (Angstrom)

30 100

Compacted Bulk Density (kg/m3)

881

Average Length

1/8

Selection of the Reactor

For hydrotreating and hydrocracking, usually two types of reactors are employed,
each having its own merits and demerits;
Trickle bed reactor
Ebullated bed (slurry) reactors

Trickle Bed Reactors

a. Advantages

Flow is close to plug flow, allowing high conversion to be achieved in a single

reactor.
Liquid-to-solid ratio is small, minimizing the homogeneous side reactions if
possible.
Liquid flows as a film, thus offering very small resistance to the diffusion of the
gaseous reactant to the catalyst surface.
Flooding is not a problem
Pressure drop is lower than in cocurrent-upflow and countercurrent-flow reactors.
If temperature rise is significant, it may be controlled by recycling the liquid
product or by the addition of the quenches to the side of the reactor. The recycle
of the liquid would cause the reactor to behave more like a CSTR; hence,
recycling will not be possible when high conversions are desired.
Can be operated as a partially or completely vapor-phase reactor. A trickle bed
reactor minimized the energy costs associated with reactant vaporization.
Lower pressure drop will allow an essentially uniform partial pressure of reactant
across the length of the reactor.
In the commercial reactor, uniform distribution of gas and liquid are achieved.
The catalyst is uniformly and effectively wetted by the liquid.

b. Disadvantages

Poor radial mixing of heat.

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76

At low liquid flow rates, flow maldistributions such as channeling, bypassing and
incomplete catalyst wetting may occur. This adversely affects the reactor
performance.
The catalyst particles cannot be very small. The intra-particle diffusion effects can
be significant. The catalyst pore-mouth plugging can cause rapid deactivation.

Slurry Bed Reactors:

a Advantages

High heat capacity providing good temperature control.

Potentially high reaction rate per unit volume of reactor if the catalyst is highly
active.
Ease of heat recovery.
Can be easily used as a batch (slurry) reactor or continuous flow (fluidized-bed)
reactor.
The catalyst can be easily removed and replaced if it decays rapidly. Steady-state
operation can be achieved even in a rapidly decaying system.
It allows the use of very fine catalyst particles, which can give an effectiveness
factor approaching unity. This is especially important if diffusion limitations
cause rapid catalytic deactivation or poorer selectively.
It allows three phase gas-liquid-solid reactions to operate in the presence of a
solid catalyst without plugging of the reactor.
It allows more flexibility for mixing, e.g., agitated slurry reactor.

b. Disadvantages

High degree of axial mixing reduces conversion. High degree of conversion is

obtained only by staging several reactors in series.
Catalyst separation from the product mixture by filtration may pose problems of
plugging the filters.
The cost of separation of catalyst and product mixture may be very high.
The high ratio of liquid to solid may allow homogeneous side reactions to become
important, if they are possible.
High liquid hold up may cause the liquid-phase diffusional resistance to the
gaseous reactant to be an important factor affecting the global rate of reaction.

Table 8.3: Comparison of Trickle bed reactor And Ebullated bed reactor
Characteristics
Trickle Bed Reactor
Ebullated Bed Reactor
Liquid flow

Channeling at low flow rates of fluid No liquid flow maldistributions are

may occur resulting in flow there.

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Conversion
Mixing
Heat control
Liquid/solid
ratio
Catalyst
wetting
Catalyst
separation
Pressure drop
Catalyst
attrition
Application
Maximum
volume
Maximum
working
pressure
Investment
costs
Operating costs

maldistributions.
High conversion can be achieved
owing to plug flow behavior of fluid
in the reactor
Poor radial mixing.
Relatively difficult, usually provided
by additional quench streams.
Ratio is less.
Partial wetting is a serious
shortcoming.
Not required as fixed beds of
catalysts are used.
It is higher.
Not a problem, as catalyst particles
are fixed.
Used where Gas/liquid ratio is very
high.

Conversion is less because of axial

mixing.
Good mixing is achieved.
Heat control is easier owing to
fluidized system.
Ratio is quite higher.
Complete wetting is possible.
Separation is required which makes
handling difficult and costly.
It is low or medium.
It may be a problem.

300 m3

Usually employed for operations

where high liquid/gas ratio is
required.
50 m3

Very high pressures possible.

10 MPa

Low.

High.

Low.

High.

As 2431 SCF of hydrogen is required per barrel of oil, so the reactor flow regime
is trickle flow regime and Trickle flow reactor is selected for the service

Up-Flow versus Down-Flow Co-Current Fixed Bed Reactors1

Pressure drop is larger in an up-flow reactor.

Better mixing in an up-flow reactor. This may give better heat transfer, but larger
axial mixing would give poorer conversion in an up-flow reactor.
At low flow rates up-flow behaves like a bubble column, i.e., gas as a dispersed
phase, liquid as a continuous phase. In down-flow trickle-bed operations, gas is a
continuous phase and liquid flows as a film.
High pressure drop in an up-flow reactor would cause significant drop in the
partial pressure of the reactant across the length of the reactor.
Under similar flow conditions, a higher gas-liquid mass transfer coefficient is
obtained in an up-flow operation than in a down-flow operation.
High liquid hold up and liquid-to-solid ratio in an up-flow reactor. High liquid
hold up will offer more liquid-phase resistance to the mass transfer of the gaseous

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reactant to the catalyst surface. High liquid-to-solid ratio will give more
importance to the role of possible homogeneous reactions.
At low liquid flow rates, up-flow will provide better distribution of liquid and,
thus, in many cases, better performance of the reactor than the down-flow reactor
under similar operating conditions.
If reaction is rapid and highly exothermic, heat transfer between liquid and solid
is more effective in an up-flow reactor.
In an up-flow reactor, the catalyst must be kept in place by suitable mechanical
methods; otherwise the bed will be fluidized. In a down-flow reactor, the catalyst
is held in place tightly by the flow. This may cause undesired cementation of the
soft catalyst particles.
In an up-flow reactor, the catalyst particles are more likely to fill completely with
the liquid than in a down-flow reactor. The catalyst effectiveness factor is lower
when the catalyst pores are completely filled with liquid compared to the case
when they are only partially filed with the liquid.
Better sweeping of the catalyst by liquid in an up-flow reactor may sometimes
give better aging of the catalyst. If a solid reactant is used, then an up-flow would
cause less solids plugging problem than the down-flow operation.
In an up-flow reactor, flooding may be a problem.

Co-Current Operation versus Counter-Current Operation:

The relative direction of flow of the liquid and gaseous phases is important.
Counter-current operation is mostly preferred for the gas-liquid-solid inert (GLSI)
reactors. In these units, the solid is used as a packing to increase the contact of the
liquid and gas phases, but it remains inert in the reaction.
Co current mode of operation is best suited for the (GLSC) gas liquid-solid
catalytic reactors where the solid acts as a catalyst

Design of the Reactor

The design of the Trickle bed reactor is the application of various fields of
Chemical engineering, along with some chemical principles which do govern the nature
of the process underway in a Trickle bed reactor. For design purposes, following
important aspects are to be evaluated and their functioning understood to have a design
which accomplishes the purpose of installment of reactor fairly.
Basic understanding of the hydrotreating chemistry.
Catalyst structure and properties.
Estimation of product yield and Hydrogen required.
Thermodynamic parameters.
Calculation of Quench gas required.
Residence time required for the reaction accomplishment.
Volume of reactor vessel.
Hydrodynamics of the reactor.
Mechanical design.
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79
Selected data, equations for calculations and calculated results are as follows
LHSV = Volumetric Feed Rate (m3/h)
Catalyst Volume (m3)
Selected value from hydrocracking studies is 2 hr-1
Catalyst Volume (m3) = Volumetric Feed Rate (m3/h)
LHSV (hr-1)
Reactor Volume (m3) = Catalyst Volume (m3) (1 + )
%age of Reactor Volume the catalyst volume is

Reactor 1
Feed Rate (kg/hr)=
Avg Density (kg/m3) =
LHSV (hr-1) =
Bed Porousity =
L/D =
%age of reactor volume =
the catalyst volume is
Catalyst density (kg/m3) =
CALCULATIONS
Vol. Feed Rate (m3/hr) =
Catalyst volume (m3) =
Actual Catalyst volume (m3) =
(accounting porousity)
Volume of Reactor (m3) =
Dr (m) =
Lr (m) =
Remaining volume (m3) =

Catalyst weight (kg) =

Define No. of beds =
A (% by wt of catalyst )
Reactor Design

154187
802
2
0.2
6
70
881
192.25
96.13
115
165
3.3
19.6
49.4

101625
3
30

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B (% by wt of catalyst )
C (% by wt of catalyst )
D (% by wt of catalyst )

40
30
0

Pressure Drop Calculations

Following is the Ergun equation for pressure drop calculations

P
G 1 150(1 )

( 3 )
1.75G
L
D p
Dp

Equation Parameters

Values

Mass Velocity G (kg/s m2)

5.1

Viscosity (Pa-s)

0.000283

Density (kg/m3)

802

Particle Diameter Dp (m)

0.003

Bed Porousity

0.2

Total Bed Length

13 m

Total Pressure Drop P (Kg/cm2)

0.60

REACTOR MECHANICAL DESIGN

Mechanical Design Includes

1.Operating Conditions
2.Design Conditions
3.Material of Construction
4.Stresses & Load Calculations
5.Head Selection
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6.Support Selection
Following table shows the results of Mechanical Design

Operating Conditions

T= 400 oC

P= 99 Barabs

Design Conditions

T= 440 oC
(20% allowance)

P= 109 Barabs
(10% allowance)

Material of Construction

SS-347 (2.25Cr-1Mo)

Wall Thickness (cm)

Weight Load (kN)

Weight Load (kN)

Reactor Design

Pi Di
c
2 Jf Pi

Wv 240Cv Dm ( H v 0.8 Dm )t

1452kN

20

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Hemispherical Head is strongest shape so we selected hemispherical Head

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Straight skirt is support used for high pressure vessels

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Specification sheet:

Equipment

Hydrotreator Reactor (R-101)

Function

HDS,HDN, Mild Hydrocracking

Type

Fixed Bed Reactor (3 phase)

Operation

Continuous, Co-current, Down flow

Reactor Volume

165 m3

Reactor Height

20 m

Reactor Diameter

3m

No. of Beds

No. of Quenches

Operating T

400 oC

Operating P

99 Bar

Design T

440 oC

Design P

109 Bar

Reactor Design