Process Stability Identification Through Dynamic Study of Single-bed Ammonia Reactor with Feed-Effluent Heat Exchanger (FEHE)

In ammonia reactor system, a feed-effluent heat exchanger (FEHE) is typically installed to utilize reaction-generated heat to heat the reactor’s feed. Utilizing energy from exothermic reaction to the incoming feed stream is often called “autothermic operation”. Despite the advantage of FEHE, there is a risk of utilizing FEHE in a reactor system such as instability of process temperature or known as hysteresis. Hysteresis phenomena in chemical process could cause operational problems, for example it could damage the integrity of the equipment’s material. This paper aims to evaluate the dynamic behavior of a single-bed ammonia reactor with FEHE, particularly to propose a way to prevent instability within the system. The dynamic simulation of the single-bed ammonia reactor with FEHE was performed with Aspen HYSYS v8.8. The result of the simulation result shows that hysteresis phenomenon in the ammonia reactor system occurs when the feed’s temperature is below a certain value. If the feed temperature reaches that value, the temperature of the reactor’s outlet oscillates. One of the solution to keep the feed temperature above that critical value is by installing a trim heater within the system. Based on the simulation, trim heater installation within the system is able to prevent hysteresis in the system evaluated.

Abstract licence: CC BY

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