Simulation of Hydroisomerization of <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-Pentane into 2-Methylbutane on a Palladium-Containing Mordenite Catalyst

A stepwise mechanism for the isomerization of n-pentane into 2-methylbutane on a bifunctional palladium-containing mordenite catalyst is proposed and a corresponding kinetic model is built. Kinetic experiments are performed in a flow catalytic reactor. During the experiments, the reactor pressure varied from 10 to 30 atm, the reactor temperature varied from 603 to 640 K, and the hydrogen/n-pentane molar ratio varied from 2 to 10. The contact time (the ratio of the catalyst weight to the mass flow rate of the raw material) varied from 0.5 to 2 h. From the data of the kinetic experiment, the kinetic constants of the model and the constants of the distribution density of the observation errors are estimated by the maximum likelihood (ML) method. A sequential design of the kinetic experiment is implemented in order to precisely estimate the model constants and the kinetic model allowing us to predict the experimental results with an accuracy exceeding that of the starting experiments. The model is shown to be adequate for the experimental data obtained.