Fluidized Bed Reactor Processes

Abstract

Fluidized bed reactors are widely used in the petrochemical (catalytic cracking) and chemical process industries (phthalic and maleic anhydride, oxychlorination of ethylene, acrylonitrile, alkylchloride production etc.). They are often selected as the reactor of choice for certain processes in which solids handling or a high heat transfer rate is of critical importance. Specifically, the success of fluid catalytic crackers is due to the simplicity with which fine particulate catalyst can be moved between the fluidized bed cracker and the fluidized bed regenerator (the particles are required to take part in two different reactions as part of the same overall process). Likewise, the successful application of fluidized bed reactors to highly exothermic oxidation processes, such as those cited above for the chemical process industries, is due to the ability of the reactor to control the exothermic reactions which are taking place.