Fogler_Ch07_Web.

fm Page 1 Tuesday, December 15, 2015 4:43 PM

Chapter 7

Web 7.8 Evaluation of Laboratory Reactors

The successful design of industrial reactors lies primarily with the reliability of
the experimentally determined parameters used in the scale-up. Consequently,
it is imperative to design equipment and experiments that will generate accurate and meaningful data. Unfortunately, there is usually no single comprehensive laboratory reactor that could be used for all types of reactions and
catalysts. In this section, we discuss the various types of reactors that can be
chosen to obtain the kinetic parameters for a specific reaction system. We
closely follow the excellent strategy presented in the article by V. W. Weekman
of Mobil Oil, now ExxonMobil.1
Web 7.8.1 Criteria

The criteria used to evaluate various types of laboratory reactors are listed in
Table 7-5.
TABLE 7-5.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

CRITERIA USED

TO

EVALUATE LABORATORY REACTORS

Ease of sampling and product analysis

Degree of isothermality
Effectiveness of contact between catalyst and reactant
Handling of catalyst decay
Reactor cost and ease of construction

Each type of reactor is examined with respect to these criteria and given
a rating of good (G), fair (F), or poor (P). What follows is a brief description
of each of the laboratory reactors. The reasons for rating each reactor for each
of the criteria are given in Professional Reference Shelf R7.4 on the CRE Web
site.
Web 7.8.2 Types of Reactors

The criteria in Table 7-2 are applied to each of the reactors shown in Figure 7-9
and are also discussed on the CRE Web site in Professional Reference Shelf
R7.4.
Web 7.8.3 Summary of Reactor Ratings

The ratings of the various reactors are summarized in Table 7-6. From this
table one notes that the CSTR and recirculating transport reactor appear to be
the best choices because they are satisfactory in every category except for construction. However, if the catalyst under study does not decay, the stirred batch
and contained-solids reactors appear to be the best choices. If the system is not
limited by internal diffusion in the catalyst pellet, larger pellets could be used,
and the stirred contained-solids reactor is the best choice. If the catalyst is
nondecaying and heat effects are negligible, the fixed-bed (integral) reactor
would be the top choice, owing to its ease of construction and operation.
However, in practice, usually more than one reactor type is used in determining the reaction-rate-law parameters.
1

V. W. Weekman, AIChE J., 20, 833 (1974).

Fogler_Ch07_Web.fm Page 2 Tuesday, December 15, 2015 4:43 PM

Chapter 7

(a) Integral reactor.

(b) Stirred-batch reactor.

(c) Stirred contained-solids

reactor.

(d) Solids in a CSTR.

(e) Straight-through
transport reactor.

(f) Recirculating transport

reactor.

Web Figure 7-9 [From Weekman, V., Laboratory Reactors and Their Limitations, AIChe
Journal 20 (5), 833 (1974), with permission of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.
Copyright 1974 AIChE. All rights reserved.]

WEB TABLE 7-6.

SUMMARY

OF REACTOR RATINGS: GASLIQUID, POWDERED CATALYST,

DECAYING CATALYST SYSTEMa

Reactor Type

Sampling
and
Analysis

Isothermality

FluidSolid
Contact

Decaying
Catalyst

Ease of
Construction

Differential
Fixed bed
Stirred batch
Stirred contained-solids
Continuous-stirred tank
Straight-through transport
Recirculating transport
Pulse

PF
G
F
G
F
FG
FG
G

FG
PF
G
G
G
PF
G
FG

F
F
G
FG
FG
FG
G
P

P
P
P
P
FG
G
FG
FG

G
G
G
FG
P-F
FG
PF
G

a G,

good; F, fair; P, poor