Abstract:

This experiment was performed to develop an understanding about the main principles employed in Continuous Stirred Tank Reactor (CSTR), determine the rate law and residence time for the reaction of Ethyl Acetate with Sodium Hydroxide and to investigate the effect of changing the reactants flow rate on the rate law and the residence time. This was achieved by preparing standard solutions of both reactants which were allowed to be mixed in the CSTR then titrating the resulting mixture with HCl standard solution. Results reveal that as the flow rate of a reactant increases, its conversion increases hence, the rate law increases. The experimental data were unable to predict the actual rate law as a result of some errors and assumptions.

Introduction:
The continuous stirred-tank reactor (CSTR figure (1)), also known as vat or backmix reactor, is a type of reactor used commonly in industrial processing. It is operated continuously, and is used primarily for liquid phase reactions. It is normally operated at steady state and is assumed to be perfectly mixed; consequently, there is no time dependence or position dependence of the temperature, the concentration, or the reaction rate inside the CSTR, that is, every variable is the same at every point inside the reactor. Because the temperature and concentration are identical everywhere within the reaction vessel, they are the same at the exit point as they are elsewhere in the tank. The saponification reaction between ethyl acetate and sodium hydroxide is an elementary, irreversible reaction, so it follows an elementary rate law, in which the reaction order of each species is identical to the stoichiometric coefficient in the chemical equation, thus for the following reaction: NaOH + C 2 H 5 COOCH 3 C 2 H 5 OH + COOCH 3 Na

.Figure 1: CSTR reactor

This experiment was performed to determine the kinetics and reaction rate of the saponification reaction by capacity flow method and to measure the residence time density function of the effluent stream. After that an experimental rate law is found and is compared to literature findings. Procedure included preparation of standard solutions and titration with standard prepared solutions as the reaction takes place in the CSTR. Phenolphthalein indicator was used to determine the end point of titration. Chemical Reactors are commonly classified by the three main characteristics: 1. Mode of operation (e.g., batch, continuous, semi batch) 2. Geometric configuration (e.g., tubular, agitated tank, radial flow) 3. Contacting patterns between phases (e.g., backed bed, fluidized bed, bubble column). Continuous reactor (flow reactors) is a vessel into which reactants are fed continuously and products are withdrawn continuously from it. The chemical