L. Vandebeld et Kr. Westerterp, OPERATION OF A CATALYTIC REVERSE FLOW REACTOR FOR THE PURIFICATION OFAIR CONTAMINATED WITH VOLATILE ORGANIC-COMPOUNDS, Canadian journal of chemical engineering, 75(5), 1997, pp. 975-983
Catalytic oxidation in a reverse flow reactor is an attractive process
for the decontamination of air polluted with volatile organic compoun
ds (VOCs). In this paper several aspects of operating this type of rea
ctor for air purification under strongly varying conditions will be di
scussed. For a successful operation of such reactor a minimum amount o
f combustibles is required, and a simple theory is developed to predic
t this minimum value. This minimum amount is strongly influenced by th
e reaction kinetics, the heat transport in the packed bed and the adia
baticity of the reactor. To core with a too low temperature level in t
he reactor for a complete conversion, an electrical heating device sho
uld be installed in the centre of the reactor bed to increase locally
the temperature rapidly and efficiently. To control the maximum temper
ature in case of too high concentrations, extra air should be added to
the feed.