Catalytic reactors in forced non-stationary operation enable autothermal VO
C oxidation even at extremely low adiabatic temperature rise. A network of
three reactors in series with large inert sections is presented as an alter
native to the reverse-flow reactor.
A one-dimensional model for simulation of VOC oxidation in forced non-stead
y state packed bed catalytic reactors has been developed and implemented in
to a program that uses standard mathematical software. Numerical simulation
reveals that the network of three catalytic reactors in series with large
inert sections is a suitable design for VOC oxidation at low concentration.
The system can be controlled by a simple set of two switches acting accord
ing to temperature setpoints.
Maximum temperature is very sensitive to heat transfer, which cannot be con
sidered as infinitely fast despite small temperature gradients between gas
and solid. These dependencies are somewhat less pronounced at higher load.
(C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.