Dynamics of cells attachment, aggregation, growth and detachment in trickle-bed bioreactors

Excessive biomass formation in two-phase flow trickle-bed bioreactors induces biological clogging and leads to the progressive obstruction of the bed that is accompanied with a build-up in pressure drop and flow channeling. One of the important aspects during biological clogging in trickle-bed bioreactors is the aggregation of cells and the detachment of cells and aggregates from pore bodies within the porous bed. Current theoretical models describing the transient behaviour of biomass accumulation and the biological clogging in trickle-bed bioreactors for wastewater treatment neglect the cell aggregation process and the aggregates detachment. An attempt has been made with this contribution in which the authors strived to develop an Euler-Euler two-fluid dynamic model based on the volume-average mass, momentum equations, species balance equations, biomass dynamics equation, filtration equations for the cells and the aggregates and discrete population balance equations for the cells agglomeration to describe two-phase flow and space-time evolution of biological clogging in trickle-bed bioreactors for wastewater treatment. Phenol biodegradation by Pseudomonas putida as the predominant species immobilized on activated carbon was chosen as a case study to illustrate the consequences of formation of excessive amounts of biomass. Cells aggregation was described by the rate at which a certain size aggregate is being formed by smaller aggregates minus the rate at which the aggregate combines to form a larger aggregate. The detachment of the cells or aggregates from the collector surface was supposed to be induced by the colloidal forces in the case of Brownian cells/aggregates or by the hydrodynamic forces in the case of non-Brownian aggregates.     

Modeling of trickle-bed reactors with exothermic reactions using cell network approach

One-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) cell network models were developed to simulate the steady-state behavior of trickle-bed reactors employed for the highly exothermic hydrotreating of benzene. The multiphase mass transfer-reaction model and novel solution method are discussed in this report. The 1D model was shown to satisfactorily simulate the axial temperature field observed experimentally for multiphase flow with exothermic reactions. The 2D reactor modeling provided valuable information about local hot spot behavior within the multiphase reactor, identifying situations in which hot spots may form. The model took into consideration the heterogeneous nature of liquid distribution, including radial liquid maldistribution and partial external wetting. This approach was proven to be stable and efficient in dealing with the complex interaction of phase vaporization and temperature rise. Through analysis and discussion, this report established the cell network model as a valid representation of the flow environment produced in a trickle bed with exothermic reactions.     

Prediction of pulsation frequency of pulsing flow in trickle-bed reactors using artificial neural network

Based on an extensive experimental database (946 measurements) set up from the literature published over past 30 years, a new correlation relying on artificial neural network (ANN) was proposed to predict the basic pulsation frequency of pulsing flow in the trickle-bed reactors. Seven dimensionless groups employed in the proposed correlation were liquid and gas Reynolds (Re_L,Re_G), liquid Weber (We_L), gas Froude (Fr_G), gas Stokes (St_G) and liquid Eötvös numbers and a bed correction factor (S_b). The performance comparisons of literature and present correlations showed that ANN correlation is significantly an improvement in predicting pulsation frequency with an AARE of 10% and a standard deviation less than 18%. The effects of the variables including the properties of fluid and bed, and flow rate of liquid and gas on pulsing frequency were investigated by ANN parametric simulations and the trends were compared with exiting experimental results that confirmed the coherence of the proposed method with the previous experiments.     

Influence of the viscosity on the liquid hold-up in trickle-bed reactors with structured packings

The influence of liquid viscosity on liquid hold-up in structured packings under co-current gas–liquid downward flow operation has been investigated for liquid viscosity from 1 to 20 cP. The liquid hold-up has been determined on a 400 mm internal diameter column by gamma tomographic cross-sectional measurements. An important influence of the viscosity on the liquid hold-up is observed. It is shown that, the widely used model supported by Bravo et al. [J.L. Bravo, J.A. Rocha, J.R. Fair, Hydrocarbon Process. January (1985) 91] assuming 1D fully established vertical liquid film flow does not agree with the experimental data. From experiments, the different assumptions used in the 1D model are discussed. On the basis of these results, a new correlation is proposed, which enables to calculate the hold-up from the viscosity, the liquid flow rate and the geometry of the packing. A comparison with data of literature is done.     

Kinetic model development and simulation of simultaneous hydrodenitrogenation and hydrodemetallization of crude oil in trickle bed reactor

One of the more difficult tasks in the petroleum refining industries that have not been considered largely in the literature is hydrotreating (HDT) of crude oil. The accurate calculations of kinetic models of the relevant reaction scheme are required for obtaining helpful models for HDT reactions, which can be confidently used for reactor design, operating and control. In this work, an optimization technique is employed to evaluate the best kinetic models of a trickle bed reactor (TBR) process utilized for hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) and hydrodemetallization (HDM) that includes hydrodevanadization (HDV) and hydrodenickelation (HDNi) of crude oil based on pilot plant experiments. The minimization of the sum of the squared errors (SSE) between the experimental and estimated concentrations of nitrogen (N), vanadium (V) and nickel (Ni) compounds in the products is used as an objective function in the optimization problem to determine the kinetic parameters.A series of experimental work was conducted in a continuous flow isothermal trickle bed reactor, using crude oil as a feedstock and the commercial cobalt-molybdenum on alumina (Co-Mo/γ-Al₂O₃) as a catalyst.A three-phase heterogeneous model based on two-film theory is developed to describe the behaviour of crude oil hydroprocessing in a pilot-plant trickle bed reactor (TBR) system. The hydroprocessing reactions have been modelled by power law kinetics with respect to nitrogen, vanadium and nickel compounds, and with respect to hydrogen. In this work, the gPROMS (general PROcess Modelling System) package has been used for modelling, simulation and parameter estimation via optimization. The model simulations results were found to agree well with the experiments carried out in a wide range of the studied operating conditions. The model is employed to predict the concentration profiles of hydrogen, nitrogen, vanadium and nickel along the catalyst bed length in three phases.     

Phenomenological approach to interpret the effect of liquid flow modulation in trickle bed reactors at the particle scale

This work analyzes the influence of liquid flow modulation on the behavior of a reaction occurring in a spherical porous particle within a trickle bed reactor. A single first-order reaction between a gaseous reactant and a non-volatile liquid reactant is considered. Non-steady-state mass balances for gas and liquid reactants are formulated and solved under isothermal conditions in order to focus the analysis on the mass transport effects. Dynamic reactant profiles inside the catalytic particle are obtained for different cycling and system conditions. The enhancement factor (ε) due to periodic operation is defined to evaluate the impact of induced liquid flow modulation on reaction rate. Influence of cycling and system parameters on the enhancement factor is also reported for a wide range of conditions. Experimental trends observed by several authors can be explained with this approach.     

Gas‐Liquid Mass Transfer in a Bench‐Scale Trickle Bed Reactor used for Benzene Hydrogenation

The gas‐liquid mass transfer coefficients (MTCs) of a trickle bed reactor used for the study of benzene hydrogenation were investigated. The Ni/Al₂O₃ catalyst bed was diluted with a coarse‐grained inert carborundum (SiC) particle catalyst. Gas‐liquid mass transfer coefficients were estimated by using a heterogeneous model for reactor simulation, incorporating reaction kinetics, vapor‐liquid equilibrium, and catalyst particle internal mass transfer apart from gas‐liquid interface mass transfer. The effects of liquid axial dispersion and the catalyst wetting efficiency are shown to be negligible. Partial external mass transfer coefficients are correlated with gas superficial velocity, and comparison between them and those obtained from experiments conducted on a bed diluted with fine particles is also presented. On both sides of the gas‐liquid interface the hydrogen mass transfer coefficient is higher than the corresponding benzene one and both increase significantly with gas velocity. The gas‐side mass transfer limitations appear to be higher in the case of dilution with fine particles. On the liquid side, the mass transfer resistances are higher in the case of dilution with coarse inerts for gas velocities up to 3 · 10^–2 cm/sec, while for higher gas velocities this was inversed and higher mass transfer limitations were obtained for the beds diluted with fine inerts.     

Modelling of unsteady-state hydrodynamics in periodically operated trickle-bed reactors:Influence of the liquid-phase physical properties

Process intensification using periodic operation of trickle bed reactors (TBRs) is still a long way from replacing conventional steady-state operation in industrial use, despite the numerous benefits described in the literature. Complex interactions between hydrodynamics, mass transfer and reaction phenomena make the design of periodically operated TBRs an almost insurmountable challenge. The development of hydrodynamic models able to provide reliable quantitative predictions of flow behaviour and possessing a sound physical basis, is an essential prerequisite for obtaining the necessary insights into this complexity. In this work, the two-phase pressure drop and dynamic liquid hold-up during max/min and on/off periodical operation were predicted using a model based on the relative permeability concept. In order to demonstrate the utility of this approach, a systematic investigation of the quantitative influence of the liquid-phase physical properties was carried out. The results obtained show that the modelling of the hydrodynamics in periodically operated TBRs using the relative permeability concept is feasible. By selecting suitable permeability parameters, unsteady-state hydrodynamics for different periodic operating modes can be predicted successfully.     

Modeling of Seed Coating in a Spouted Bed

In this work, a model based on population balance equations applied to perfect mixture domains has been employed to represent the coating of soybeans with fertilizer in a conical–cylindrical spouted bed. The results of the present model provided explicit equations for the coating mean and variance. The coating mass distribution function was validated against experimental data. The effect of operational time on the distributions was analyzed, showing that the coating uniformity can be improved by increasing the operating time.     

Mathematical simulations of the performance of trickle bed and slurry reactors for methanol synthesis

Three- and two-phase reactor models were developed to simulate the performance of trickle bed and slurry reactors for methanol synthesis. The combination of orthogonal collocation and quasi-linearization was used to solve the trickle bed reactor model incorporating resistance to interparticle and intraparticle diffusion and resistance to mass transfer between gas and liquid phases. Model parameters were estimated independently from either published correlations or literature data. The model predicts significant resistance to intraparticle diffusion on the performance of trickle bed reactors. However, comparisons between pilot size trickle bed and slurry reactors illustrate the superior performance of trickle bed reactors over the slurry reactors for methanol synthesis even with diffusion limitations.     

PTA装置精制单元的堵塞问题及处理

介绍了PTA精制单元的工艺流程,对PTA生产中换热器、泵的进出口、结晶器间的堵塞原因进行分析。根据生产经验,提出堵塞的预防和处理措施,最大限度保证装置的平稳生产。     

Fixed‐Bed Heat Storage – Mathematical Modeling Approaches

While renewable heat makes up only 13 % of overall German heat consumption, the share of renewable electricity produced from wind, solar, water, and geothermal power already reached 36 % of overall electricity consumption in 2017. One measure to support the integration of renewable heat in the German energy system is the use of heat storage systems. Although water‐based heat storage systems for temperatures up to 100 °C are state of the art, systems for temperatures up to several hundred degrees Celsius are still under investigation or in the demonstration phase. Therefore, this work focuses on the development of a simulation model for analyzing and engineering fixed‐bed thermal storage systems that are filled with an inert bulk material such as stone fragments.     

Modeling of monolithic and trickle-bed reactors for the hydrogenation of styrene

A kinetic study into the styrene hydrogenation over a palladium on alumina catalyst has been made. Styrene was used as a model component for pyrolysis gasoline. A kinetic rate expression has been derived and the inhibiting effect of sulfur components has been included. Using this kinetics and mass-transfer models compiled from literature, the performance of two types of reactors for the styrene (pyrolysis gasoline) hydrogenation has been evaluated. A structured reactor such as a monolith has large advantages over a conventional trickle-bed reactor. For the monolithic reactor a more than 3 times higher volumetric productivity is obtained with much less catalyst. The modeling results indicate that deactivation by gum formation should be significantly less due to much better hydrogen mass transfer in the reactor.     

Application of Quasi Steady-State Model to Slow Mode Periodic Pulsation of the Liquid in Trickle Bed Reactors

Many published studies show the benefits of forced pulsation of the liquid flow rate in a trickle bed reactor, especially when mass transfer phenomena are rate controlling. Two types of periodic liquid pulsation, the slow and fast mode, are examined in the literature, depending on the period of the pulsation.

The aim of this work is to show that, when slow mode pulsation occurs, the quasi steady-state model can be applied. The model assumes that the mean conversion rate in pulsed mode is the weighted mean of the two steady conversion rates at the minimum and maximum liquid flow rates. In fact, the period of the liquid pulsation is long enough to allow the reactor to reach the quasi steady-state conditions at every level of the liquid flow rate. The validity of the model is checked with experimental data concerning α-methylstyrene hydrogenation to cumene.     

高效好氧生物技术及其在污水处理中的应用

近年来好氧生物技术得到了不断的发展,出现许多高效的、可处理难降解甚至有毒废水的好氧生物技术.本文主要综述了3种从不同方面实现高效降解有机废水的好氧生物处理技术:移动床生物膜反应器、加压曝气技术以及膜生物反应器在废水处理中的应用进展,并概括了各自的优缺点,最后对这3种生物工艺的发展进行了展望.     

Modeling for the catalytic coupling reaction of carbon monoxide to diethyl oxalate in fixed-bed reactors: Reactor model and its applications

A two-dimensional (2D) pseudo-homogeneous reactor model was developed to simulate the performance of fixed-bed reactors for catalytic coupling reaction of carbon monoxide to diethyl oxalate. Reactor modeling was performed using a comprehensive numerical model consisting of two-dimensional coupled material and energy balance equations. A power law kinetic model was applied for simulating the catalytic coupling reaction with considering one main-reaction and two side-reactions. The validity of the reactor model was tested against the measured data from different-scale demonstration processes and satisfactory agreements between the model prediction and measured results were obtained. Furthermore, detailed numerical simulations were performed to investigate the effect of major operation parameters on the reactor behavior of fixed bed for catalytic coupling reaction of carbon monoxide to diethyl oxalate, and the result shows that the coolant temperature is the most sensitive parameter.     

Engineering and modeling of thin, adhesive, microbial biocatalytic coatings for high intensity oxidations in multi-phase microchannel bioreactors

A model-based investigation of the reactivity of a multi-phase microchannel bioreactor for the oxidation of d-sorbitol to l-sorbose by viable Gluconobacter oxydans entrapped in an adhesive, bilayer, and nano-porous latex coating has been performed. Using kinetics and mass-transfer information from literature, the overall productivity of a single microchannel was determined. For liquid and gas superficial velocities typical for monoliths and channel diameters smaller than 1000 μm, volumetric l-sorbose formation rates larger than 30 g l⁻¹ h⁻¹ were predicted. Since the system was approximately kinetically controlled any effort to increase the coating reactivity, for example by using thinner topcoats or improving cell viability should result in a further increase of the overall reactivity. These modeling studies should provide the basis for engineering of channel geometry, biocatalytic coating nano-porosity and thickness, coating stability, optimal reactivity and multi-phase channel flow properties for future microchannel bioreactors for high intensity microbial oxidations.     

A coupling model for EGSB bioreactors: Hydrodynamics and anaerobic digestion processes

The aim of this paper is to present a coupling model for calculating both the hydrodynamic and anaerobic digestion processes in expanded granular sludge bed (EGSB) bioreactors for treating wastewaters. The bioreactor is modeled as a dynamic (gas-solid-liquid) three-phase system. An existing set of experimental data of three case studies based on the start-up and operational performance of EGSB reactors is used to adjust and validate the model. A novel parameter, the specific rate of granule rupture, is defined for calculating the biomass transport phenomena. Values around 1 × 10⁻²⁰ dm d² g⁻¹ are calculated for this parameter. Bioreactor performances were analyzed through the main variable profiles such as pH, COD, VFA and VSS concentration. A good agreement was obtained among experimental and predicted values. It seems to indicate that the proposed EGSB model is able to reproduce the main biological and hydrodynamic successes in the bioreactor.     

Modeling of a metal monolith catalytic reactor for methane steam reforming-combustion coupling

A novel metal monolith reactor for coupling methane steam reforming with catalytic combustion is proposed in this work, the metal monolith is used as a co-current heat exchanger and the catalysts are deposited on channel walls of the monolith. The transport and reaction performances of the reactor are numerically studied utilizing heterogeneous model based on the whole reactor. The influence of the operating conditions like feed gas velocity, temperature and composition are predicted to be significant and they must be carefully adjusted in order to avoid hot spots or insufficient methane conversion. To improve reactor performance, several different channel arrangements and catalyst distribution modes in the monolith are designed and simulated. It is demonstrated that reasonable reactor configuration, structure parameters and catalyst distribution can considerably enhance heat transfer and increase the methane conversion, resulting in a compact and intensified unit.