Non-adiabatic radial-flow reactor for styrene production

A non-adiabatic radial reactor is proposed to carry out the dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene to styrene. Radial flow and continuous heating (using supe rheated steam) are the main features of the new design. Steam used as heati ng medium flows through tubes, which are radially installed in the catalyst bed. By means of steady-state simulations, this new design has been compar ed with two adiabatic beds with radial Bow and reheating between stages (si milar to those used in industry). For equal steam consumption, the proposed design leads to higher selectivity to styrene than the industrial adiabati c design. This enhancement in selectivity (which is observed for different conversion levels) would significantly improve the economics of the styrene production process. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.