An Extensive Analysis on the Start‐up of a Simple Distillation Column with Multiple Steady States

The impact of start‐up procedures on the behaviour of simple distillation columns with multiple steady states is analyzed. A well‐known system with hysteresis is studied in this paper and transient responses for a binary distillation column yielding different steady states during the start‐up operation are shown. Several dynamic simulation results showing an interesting behaviour are presented. Through the examination of the profile evolutions corresponding to given start‐up policies, it can be seen how the column arrives to different steady states. It is shown that it is possible to identify a set of critical values for the start‐up supervision. Also, guidelines of general validity are achieved with the aim of finding the appropriate start‐up policy to obtain the desired solution.     

Start‐up of slot die coating

A flow visualization technique was employed to observe the start‐up of slot die coating. The effects of five variables, i.e., prewetting on the die surface, fluid viscosity, slot gap, coating gap, and die lip length on the start‐up time were investigated. Prewetting on the die surface can effectively reduce the start‐up time. Any variable that enlarges the steady‐state coating bead would increase the start‐up time. Therefore, increasing the fluid viscosity, coating gap, slot gap and decreasing the die lip length can be helpful in reducing the start‐up time. It was found that there exist four distinct modes for the establishment of steady‐state coating bead. The four distinct modes can be distinguished by a Reynolds number, which is defined as the ratio of the inertial force of the coating solution impinging on the moving web to the viscous force needed to pull the coating solution on the web. Comparison of the experimental observation with the theoretical prediction based on the commercial package Flow3D was also performed; the four modes can be found in the numerical simulations, the start‐up time computed to reach steady state is shorter. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2009. © 2009 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Analysis of the Start‐up Process for Reactive Distillation

The start‐up procedure of a distillation column is a time‐ and energy‐consuming process. Further, the products during the start‐up time are off specification and cannot easily be recycled as for conventional distillation but must costly be disposed of. In this paper, a process model to simulate the barely analyzed start‐up procedure for a reactive distillation from the cold and empty state to steady state is presented. The start‐up of a reactive distillation column has been modeled with gPROMS. The advantage of a cold and empty start‐up is the consistent and reproducible initialization. Commercial simulators do not give the opportunity to start form a cold and empty state, e.g., a column modeled with Hysys must be shut down from a steady state to be able to model the complete start‐up process, which is not possible, for example, for a batch process. Also, a change in the describing equations and discontinuities in process variables is difficult to handle within the simulation. In this paper, the start‐up strategies normally used for distillation without reaction are examined and applied to reactive distillation. It will be shown that the widely used strategy of total reflux is not suitable for reactive distillation. A simplified model to derive a time constant which describes the influence of parameter setting changes, like heating power, reflux ratio and feed composition on the start‐up time, is introduced and validated.     

Fate of commensalistic cultures in identical coupled bioreactors

A comprehensive analysis of static and dynamic behavior of a mixed culture in two identical coupled bioreactors is presented considering anaerobic digestion involving acidogens (X) and methanogens (Y) as the example bioprocess. A single continuous culture may operate at up to seven steady states, including up to four coexistence steady states, with only one coexistence steady state being locally stable. The one-way interaction between X and Y allows for compartmentalization of the system for a stand-alone bioreactor and two coupled bioreactors into two subsystems, which facilitates the analysis of steady state types and stability characteristics of these and classification of dynamic behavior. The bioreactors in the two-reactor system are identical only in terms of feed composition and reactor space time. A two-reactor system may admit up to forty nine steady states, which are comprised of up to forty coexistence steady states, at least at very low interaction rate (R). The static and dynamic analysis of the two-reactor system is facilitated by appropriate grouping of large number of steady states arising for very low R into nine clusters. Numerical illustrations reveal the rich steady state structure of the bioprocess in coupled bioreactors. While a single bioreactor can operate at only one locally stable coexistence steady state, the coupled bioreactors can operate at up to five locally stable coexistence steady states over certain ranges of R. The two-reactor system is operationally more flexible and more robust vis-a-vis single reactor as concerns maintenance of mixed culture. Emergence of four additional steady state clusters and additional coexistence and partial washout steady states at intermediate R reveals that the coupled bioreactors are an example of a complex system.     

Dynamic analysis and open‐loop start‐up of an integrated radiant syngas cooler and steam methane reformer

The transient performance of an integrated radiant syngas cooler (RSC) of an entrained‐bed gasifier and steam methane reformer (SMR) is investigated. Base‐case designs using either co‐current or counter‐current configurations are subjected to operating transients to evaluate the feasibility to transition to new steady states. Each system, under open loop, is subjected to changes in key variables of the SMR feed on the tube side and disturbances to variables of the coal‐derived syngas on the RSC side to determine the dynamics and stability of the integrated system. The results indicate that the co‐current configuration is flexible to move to new operating steady states and more safe than the counter‐current configuration, although it provides less cooling and has poorer methane conversion. The variables likely to violate the design limit in the event of a disturbance are identified. A start‐up procedure is also established based on industrial practices employed for entrained‐bed gasifiers and methane reformers. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 63: 1602–1619, 2017     

Phase Distribution Measurements during Transient Bubbly Two‐Phase Flow in a Vertical Pipe

An experimental procedure for investigating transient bubble flow for an adiabatic air/water system with vertical upward flow in a pipe is presented. The results of the measured local transient two‐phase flow parameters are shown along a pipe length of approx. four meters. From the measured radial phase distributions under steady and under transient conditions one can draw conclusions about the interfacial forces. Here, the effects indicate the action of forces such as a transverse lift force and a time dependent force like the virtual mass force during the transient. For modelling the transverse lift force which seems to play a dominant role for that flow regime the formulation of Zun was chosen and it was implemented into the commercial CFD‐Code Fluent Release 4.4.4 via user‐defined subroutines. Finally, results from the simulation of the steady states of start and end conditions of an experimental measured transient are shown.     

Start‐Up of HT‐PEFC Systems Operating with Diesel and Kerosene for APU Applications

Fuel‐cell‐based auxiliary power units offer power generation with reduced fuel consumption and low emissions. A very promising system is the combination of an autothermal reformer with a high‐temperature polymer electrolyte fuel cell. A fast start‐up procedure is a crucial requirement for the use of this system as an auxiliary power unit. This paper reports on the development of a suitable start‐up strategy for a 10 kW_el auxiliary power unit with a start‐up burner. A commercially available diesel burner was tested as a start‐up device. A dynamic MATLAB/Simulink model was developed to analyze different start‐up strategies. With the currently available apparatus and start‐up burner it takes 2,260 s before power generation can begin according to simulation results. The fuel processor alone would be ready for operation after 1,000 s. An optimization of the fuel cell stack with regard to its thermal mass would lead to a start‐up time of 720 s. A reduction to 600 s is possible with a slight customization of the start‐up burner.     

A FLEXIBLE STATE SPACE MODEL AND ITS APPLICATIONS

The standard state space model treats observations as imprecise measurement of the Markovian states. Our flexible model handles the states and observations symmetrically, which are simultaneously determined by past observations and up to first‐lagged states. The only distinction between the states and observations is the observability. When it is applied to the autoregressive moving average, dynamic factor and stochastic volatility models, the state space form is both parsimonious and intuitive, for low‐dimension states are constructed simply by stacking all the relevant but unobserved components in the structural model.     

Predictions for Start‐Up Processes of Reactive Distillation Column via Artificial Neural Network

The time consumed in starting up the unit with appropriate holdups can form an important part of the total distillation time, particularly for reactive distillation systems with large holdups. Also, the products formed during the start‐up time are off specification, and are not easily recycled as for traditional distillation, but must be carefully disposed of, which can be very costly. A back‐propagation algorithm artificial neural network model is presented as a tool to assess the start‐up process for a given reactive distillation system. All the data required for training and testing the artificial neural network have been generated using the CHEMCAD simulator, version 5.2–0. The values for the learning rate, momentum term, and gain term of the artificial neural network have been taken as 0.01, 0.6, and 1.0, respectively. From the case studied in this work, it can be seen that a good start‐up policy can reduce both the energy and time requirements in the start‐up phase of reactive distillation processes. Results from predictions show the time consumed in the start‐up period has an average error of 2.833 %, and a maximum error of 7.600 %, for the case studied here. The accuracy of the model will depend upon the data available and the type of model being approximated.     

Troubleshooting HF Alkylation Units

Good design criteria, an excellent clean‐up and the best knowledge with regard to the philosophy of operation allows a fast start‐up and a reduction of the time to reach the designed steady‐state conditions in the alkylation units. Presented are the findings after starting‐up three new alkylation units as well as the difficulties encountered and their possible solutions.     

Modeling of Multistage Bubble Column Reactors for Oxidation Reaction

In this work, a mathematical model based on axial dispersion has been suggested to simulate the behavior of a multistage bubble column reactor. A six‐stage pilot‐scale reactor with an inner diameter of 0.35 m and a height of 12 m was used for hydrogen peroxide production through the direct oxidation of isopropyl alcohol at isothermal condition. Steady‐state and dynamic simulations were performed to predict the concentration of all the reactants in gas and liquid phases. It was observed that for steady state‐conditions the simulation results were consistent with the experimental results. Dynamic models involving liquid back‐mixing can be used for the simulation of start‐up, shut‐down or transition operations in this kind of a rector.     

Stady‐state and Dynamical Simulation of an Autothermal Gasoline Reformer

Detailed numerical simulation is an important tool for the analysis, development and optimization of new reactor systems. In this contribution results of steady‐state and dynamic simulations of a hydrogen production system for mobile applications based on gasoline are presented. The system consists of an autothermal reformer, a high temperature shift reactor and a countercurrent heat exchanger for heat integration. The simulations are based on 1‐D, multiphase, dynamic models, which are solved with the simulation tool PDEX‐Pack. Firstly steady‐state and dynamic simulations of the autothermal reformer alone are presented. Concentration and temperature profiles in the reformer under different operation conditions are discussed and possibilities to improve the performance are assessed. Dynamic simulations of load change and cold start show the fast dynamic response of the reformer due to its low thermal mass. Simulations of the coupled system underline the impact of the heat exchanger design for the system performance, especially under dynamic conditions. Finally dynamic simulations of a possible cold start strategy for the system are discussed.     

Start‐Up Characteristics of Segmented‐In‐Series Tubular SOFC Power Modules Improved by Catalytic Combustion at Cathodes

For large‐scale SOFC power generation systems, a shorter start‐up time of SOFC cell stacks with relatively large heat capacity is one of the most important technological issues to determine the flexibility in SOFC system operation. In this study, start‐up procedures have been examined to shorten the start‐up time period. The conventional heating procedure using pre‐heated hot air and self‐heating by SOFC operation at low temperatures had a difficulty to shorten the start‐up time period because of the limitation in power generation at lower temperatures. In this study, as an alternative start‐up procedure, catalytic combustion at the SOFC cathodes is, for the first time, demonstrated to be useful on the system level. The applicability of the catalytic combustion to shorten the start‐up time period has been verified numerically as well as experimentally by using a large‐scale cell stack cartridge. This unique start‐up procedure enables to operate SOFC‐based large‐scale power generation systems.     

Transient and steady‐state conduction in ethyl cellulose (EC)–poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) blends

Transient discharging currents and steady‐state conduction in solution‐grown ethyl cellulose (EC)–poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) blends measured as a function of temperature (30–80 °C) and field strength (10–100 kV cm⁻¹) are reported. Transient currents are found to follow the Curie–VonSchweidler law, characterized by different slopes in short‐ and long‐time regions, having different decay constant values lying between 0.75–0.99, and 1.68–1.95. The corresponding activation energies are found to increase with time of measurement of discharge current. Isochronal characteristics (ie current versus temperature plots at constant times) constructed from the data seem to reveal a broad peak observed at 60 °C. The dependence of dark current at different temperatures (30–80 °C) in a metal (1)–EC–PMMA blend–metal (1)/(2) system on the applied voltage in the range 10–100 kV cm⁻¹ has also been studied; the current is found to be strongly temperature dependent. Dipole polarization and space charge resulting from trapping of injected charge carriers in energetically distributed traps and induced dipoles created because of the piling up of charge carriers at the phase boundary of the heterogeneous components of the blend are considered to account for the observed transient currents. The results of current–voltage measurement on blends are interpreted to show that the low‐field steady‐state conduction is ohmic in nature, and in high fields the charge carriers are generated by field‐assisted lowering of coulombic barriers at the traps and are conducted through the bulk of the material by a hopping process between the localized states by a Jonscher–Ansari Poole–Frenkel mechanism. The modified P–F barrier is calculated to be 1.89 × 10⁻¹⁹ J (1.18 eV), 1.92 × 10⁻¹⁹ J (1.20 eV) and 1.95 × 10⁻¹⁹ J (1.22 eV) for P₁, P₂ and P₃ blends, respectively. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effects of Liquid Holdup in Condensers on the Start‐Up of Reactive Distillation Columns

Compared with start‐ups in conventional distillation columns, those in reactive distillation (RD) columns are much more time and energy consuming, and generate a large amount of by‐products which are not easy to deal with together. For several years, researchers have been trying out different methods to shorten the time required to lower the cost of the start‐up. In this work, a rigorous dynamic model in the ChemCAD simulator is applied to model the start‐up process for the esterification of ethyl acetate in a reactive distillation column. In the model, two sets of equations are employed: one for the fill‐up and heating stage and the other for the equilibration process which follows. In the fill‐up and heating stage, fluctuation curves of the reboiler temperatures with respect to time which are similar to those for conventional distillation columns are observed, while in the equilibration process it is found that the increase of the liquid holdup volume in the condenser reduces the time required to reach steady state for the reactive column and decreases the liquid holdup volume in the reboiler at the equilibrium state. This shows that the liquid holdup volume in the condenser has an important effect on the start‐up of reactive distillation columns.     

SUDDEN DESTABILIZATION OF CONTROLLED CHEMICAL PROCESSES

Input multiplicity occurs when more than one set of inputs can produce the same set of outputs. Input multiple steady states are divided into compatible steady states having process gains of similar sign, and opposed steady stales with process gains of opposite sign. For a system controlled with reset action, only the compatible steady states satisfy the necessary condition for stability. Any disturbance which drives the controlled system from the designed steady state to a less stable or unstable compatible steady state can cause sudden destabilization of the process. Several examples are given of the possible types of behavior resulting from this phenomenon.

Multiple steady states also occur for systems with proportional controllers. For single-input-single-output systems with continuous process characteristics, whether or not reset action is used, two steady states positioned next to each other cannot both be stable under closed-loop control. However, under proportional control, opposed steady states for which 1 + K_cK_p is positive can be stable.     

Simultaneous process and control system design for grade transition in styrene polymerization

We present a comprehensive approach to the simultaneous design and control of a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) for styrene solution polymerization that must be able to produce different polymer grades. The resulting tool allows simultaneous selection of the polymerization equipment, the multivariable feedforward-feedback controller's structure and tuning parameters, the steady states and the transition paths between them. For this purpose a multiobjective optimization is implemented to minimize the annualized reactor cost, the operating costs, the production of off-specification polymer and the transition time between steady states. Trade-offs between the sometimes conflicting objectives are dealt with by the optimization. Unlike many previous grade transition studies, steady states are not known a priori. The only known parameters are the target molecular weights to be produced at each steady state. We have analyzed three different scenarios, and propose practical criteria for selecting the most reasonable optimum when the solution is not unique.     

A globally convergent method for finding all steady‐state solutions of distillation columns

A globally convergent method is proposed that either returns all solutions to steady‐state models of distillation columns or proves their infeasibility. Initial estimates are not required. The method requires a specific but fairly general block‐sparsity pattern; in return, the computational efforts grow linearly with the number of stages in the column. The well‐known stage‐by‐stage (and the sequential modular) approach also reduces the task of solving high‐dimensional steady‐state models to that of solving a sequence of low‐dimensional ones. Unfortunately, these low‐dimensional systems are extremely sensitive to the initial estimates, so that solving them can be notoriously difficult or even impossible. The proposed algorithm overcomes these numerical difficulties by a new reparameterization technique. The successful solution of a numerically challenging reactive distillation column with seven steady‐states shows the robustness of the method. No published software known to the authors could compute all solutions to this difficult model without expert tuning. © 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J 60: 410–414, 2014     

Dynamics of a CSTR for styrene polymerization initiated by a binary initiator system

The steady state and dynamic behavior of a continuous stirred tank reactor has been analyzed for free radical solution polymerization of styrene initiated by a mixture of two initiators having different thermal stabilities. From the steady state analysis of the reactor model with a mean residence time as a bifurcation parameter, four unique regions of steady state solutions are identified in an operating parameter space for a given initiator feed composition. A variety of complex bifurcation behavior such as multiple steady states, Hopf bifurcation and limit cycles have been observed and their stability characteristics have been analyzed. The effects of feed initiator composition and the concentration of the initiator in the feed stream on the reactor dynamics are also presented.     

Modeling of chemical reactors—XXX: Steady-state analysis of combined axial and gas-to-solid heat and mass transfer in a tubular adiabatic reactor

The topic of interest in this paper is the behaviour of a dispersion model which embraces external gas-to-solid heat and mass transfer. Two methods of solution of transport equations-shooting technique and parameter mapping method are suggested. The effect of governing parameters on the occurrence of multiple steady states is investigated. It is shown that multiple steady states can be caused by two factors: axial dispersion and external gas-to-solid heat and mass transfer. If the interphase heat and mass transfer is responsible for the multiple steady states then an infinite number of steady states may exist. Under certain conditions hot spot temperatures may be expected in an adiabatic reactor.