Kinetic Model of Olefins/Isobutane Alkylation Using Sulfuric Acid as Catalyst

Abstract

The alkylation of isobutane and low molecular olefins using strong acid as catalysts is an important process in the petrochemical field, and its product, alkylate, is an ideal gasoline blending component due to high octane number, low vapor pressure, low sulfur, and lack of aromatics. To better meet the optimization process of the simulation of the alkylation unit, a reaction kinetic model with 20 reactions based on industrial data was developed, in which the alkylation products were divided into lumped components in detail. The reactor model was established based on the flow state and structural pattern of the industrial reactor, considering the internal circulation flow, and is suitable for the simulation of the DuPont alkylation process. Also, eventually, the model parameters were solved by the nonlinear least-squares fitting method. The results of the validation calculations showed that the kinetic model fitted the experimental data with good agreement. In addition, the reaction kinetic model was used to predict the influence of operating conditions, which is consistent with the trend in actual industrial production.