Modeling of Catalyst Deactivation in Bioethanol Dehydration Reactor

The catalytic ethanol dehydration route is a reality for the production of polyethylene from renewable sources. Ethanol dehydration process is performed in the presence of acid catalysts, under temperatures ranging from 500 K to 800 K, obtaining ethylene selectivity ranging from 95% to 99% and ethanol conversion of >98%. Despite the favorable values of conversion and selectivity, catalyst deactivation by coking is a well-known phenomenon that occurs in this process. This phenomenon leads to catalyst regeneration cycles, given that the catalyst's life cycle is dependent on the process operating conditions. Thus, obtaining a mathematical model to optimize the ethanol dehydration process is of great interest to industry, allowing process optimization and optimal design of reactors. This work presents a phenomenological model of an ethanol dehydration fixed-bed reactor considering the catalyst deactivation and several chemical species. The developed mathematical model for catalyst deactivation considers species present in the reaction system as coke precursors. The predictive ability of the model, which has been validated with industrial plant data, are shown in the results, presenting deviations of <5% in the reactor temperature profile.