In this paper, a robust adaptive weakly implicit finite difference algorithm, which can accurately capture the moving temperature and reaction fronts in unsteady-state operation fixed-bed reactors, is developed. For spatial adaptation, node placement is based on a combination of the magnitude of the second spatial derivative and that of the first derivative. The robustness of the algorithm is demonstrated by comparing the computed result with the analytical solution to a linear heat regenerator model as well as the computed result by an algorithm developed by Kulkarni and Dudukovic [1] in 1995. An application of the algorithm to simulating SO_2 oxidation over a vanadium catalyst in fixed-bed reactor with flow reversal is presented.
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