Dynamic behavior of trickle-bed reactors

An analysis is given for the transient behavior of a trickle-bed reactor in which gas and liquid streams flow downwards through a bed of catalyst particles. Equations are given for the zero and first moments of the response, in either the gas or liquid effluent, to a pulse input of concentration in either the liquid or gas feed. First-order, reversible adsorption, and adsorption plus first-order irreversible reaction are considered.Procedures are discussed and illustrated for evaluating equilibrium, mass transfer, and reaction rate constants from the moment equations. Also, the dependency of the moments on the rate and equilibrium constants are summarized for various reactor arrangements and chemical processes. This information is useful in designing experiments to give data suitable for evaluating such constants.