THE REACTIVITY OF ETHYLENE CONTAINING MINOR AMOUNTS OF ACETYLENE

摘要

A project to deal with off-specification ethylene involved transfer of "off-spec" ethylene to caverns or salt domes for storage and reprocessing at a later date. This off-spec system would operate at conditions approaching 2000 psig pressure and storage temperatures in excess of 120 deg F. This system would have to be able to store a mixture of ethylene contaminated with acetylene concentrations of as much as 1.5 mole percent. Previous literature suggests that for safe operation, no system should be designed and operated with an acetylene partial pressure in excess of 8 psig. Evaluations of the potential hazards associated with storage of a mixture of ethylene and up to 2 mole percent acetylene were reviewed. Based on experimental data obtained, a literature review, and a thermodynamic evaluation, it was concluded that storage of an ethylene mixture with up to 2 mole percent acetylene does not pose any new or unexpected hazards due to the presence of acetylene.