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CONTENTS
 Reactors
Slurry

Slurry
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Slurry reactors are three phase reactors (solid/liquid/gas). Pictured Advantages
below is a slurry reactor used in the production of polyethylene Disadvantages
products. Acknowledgements
References
Developers

RELATED
Tricklebed
CSTR
Bioreactors
Slurry
Semi- Batch
PFR
PBR
Oxidizers
Nuclear Reactors
(Copyright INEOS Technologies, United Kingdom)
Moving Bed

General Information Fuel Cells

Fixed Film
Slurry reactors are three-phase reactors, meaning they can be used to
FBR
react solids, liquids, and gases simultaneously. They usually consist of
Catalysts
a catalyst (solid) suspended in a liquid, through which a gas is
CVD Reactors
bubbled. They can operate in either semi-batch or continuous mode.
Batch
The slurry phase Fischer-Tropsch reactor pictured below is used in a
gas-to-liquid (GTL) process plant to convert natural gas into GTL diesel.

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CONTENTS
Slurry
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Acknowledgements
References
Developers

(Copyright ORYX GTL and Sasol Limited) RELATED

Tricklebed
Equipment Design CSTR
The movie below shows the basic operation of a slurry reactor. Inside Bioreactors
the reactor are catalyst pellets suspended in a liquid. Gas reactant is Slurry
bubbled into the reactor. The gas is absorbed into the liquid from the Semi- Batch
bubble surface. The absorbed gas then di uses through the liquid to PFR
the catalyst surface, at which point it di uses into the catalyst pellet PBR
and the reaction takes place. Oxidizers
Nuclear Reactors
Moving Bed
Reactors - Slurry Reactor Fuel Cells
Fixed Film
FBR
Catalysts
CVD Reactors
Batch

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The diagram below shows the synthesis of methanol in a slurry batch

reactor. Syngas enters at the bottom of the reactor into heated
mineral oil. The gas then reacts with the assistance of suspended
catalyst to form the methanol product. Unreacted gas and methanol
vapor exit though the top of the reactor. Once out of the reactor, the
CONTENTS
methanol is condensed to a liquid.
Slurry
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Acknowledgements
References
Developers

RELATED
Tricklebed
CSTR
Bioreactors
Slurry
Semi- Batch
PFR
PBR
Oxidizers
Nuclear Reactors
(Copyright the U.S. Department of Energy) Moving Bed
Fuel Cells
Usage Examples Fixed Film
Slurry reactors are most frequently used when a liquid reactant must FBR
be contacted with a solid catalyst, and when a reaction has a high heat Catalysts
of reaction. They may be used in such applications as hydrogenation, CVD Reactors
oxidation, hydroformation, and ethynylation. The reactor shown Batch
below is a slurry phase hydrogenation reactor.

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CONTENTS
Slurry
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Acknowledgements
References
Developers

RELATED
Tricklebed
CSTR
Bioreactors
Slurry
Semi- Batch
PFR
PBR
Oxidizers
Nuclear Reactors
(Copyright WRK Design and Services Ltd., Birmingham, UK)
Moving Bed
High molecular weight carbons are produced in slurry reactors by Fuel Cells
running CO and H 2 through wax. Fixed Film
FBR
Advantages Disadvantages Catalysts
CVD Reactors
Good temperature control. Reactor may plug up.
Batch
Good heat recovery. Uncertainties in design
Constant overall catalytic process.
activity maintained easily Finding suitable liquids may
by addition of small be di cult.
amount of catalyst. Higher ratio of liquid to
Useful for catalysts that catalyst than in other
can't be pelletized. reactors.
Large heat capacity of
reactor acts as a safety

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feature against explosions.

Acknowledgements
INEOS Technologies , United Kingdom
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ORYX GTL and Sasol Limited , Johannesburg, South Africa
Slurry
U.S. Department of Energy , Washington, DC General Information
Equipment Design
WRK Design and Services Ltd. , Birmingham, UK Usage Examples
Advantages

References Disadvantages
Acknowledgements
Fogler, Scott H. Elements of Chemical Reaction Engineering . 3rd ed. References
Englewood Cli s, NJ:      Prentice-Hall, 1998. Print. Developers

Hill, Charles G., Jr. An Introduction to Chemical Engineering Kinetics RELATED

and Reactor Design .      New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 1977. Print. Tricklebed
CSTR
Perry, Robert H., and Don W. Green. Perry's Chemical Engineers' Bioreactors
Handbook . 7th ed. New      York: McGraw-Hill Inc., 1997: 23-28. Print. Slurry
Semi- Batch
Developers PFR
Sam Catalano PBR
Oxidizers
Alex Wozniack Nuclear Reactors
Moving Bed
Kelsey Kaplan
Fuel Cells
Fixed Film
FBR
Catalysts
CVD Reactors
Batch

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CONTENTS
Slurry
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Acknowledgements
References
Developers

RELATED
Tricklebed
CSTR
Bioreactors
Slurry
Semi- Batch
PFR
PBR
Oxidizers
Nuclear Reactors
Moving Bed
Fuel Cells
Fixed Film
FBR
Catalysts
CVD Reactors
Batch

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