Experimental Reaction Equilibrium and Kinetics of the Liquid-phase Butyl Acrylate Synthesis Applied to Reactive Distillation Simulations

摘要

Butyl acrylate, which can be produced in liquid phase from butanol and acrylic acid, is an important precursor for varnishes and adhesives. The reaction equilibrium and the kinetics of the butyl acrylate synthesis catalyzed by acid ion exchange resins were measured and the results are used to derive formulas for the equilibrium and the kinetics which is supposedly based on a Langmuir-Hinshelwood-Hougen-Watson mechanism. Because of the highly nonideal rection mixture, both the equilibrium and the kinetics are expressed in terms of activities. The equations are used in the modeling and simulation of a butyl acrylate production plant which consists of a catalytic tube reactor and a reactive distillation column. A column that is operated in the common manner, i.e. by heating only the reboiler, leads to a reactive azeotrope over a large part of the column. However, distributing the heat flow over the whole column improves the separation and the conversion significantly.