Catalytic wet oxidation of phenol:: Kinetics of phenol uptake

Catalytic phenol oxidation in aqueous phase under intermediate temperature and pressure has been carried out in order to determine the kinetic model of phenol uptake rate. The catalyst employed here was a commercial one based on copper supplied by Engelhard (Cu-0203T). Operational variables have been studied in the following ranges: temperature from 127 to 180 degreesC, oxygen pressure from 3.2 to 16 bar, initial phenol concentration from 680 to 1200 ppm, and catalyst concentration from 0 to 1550 g/L of liquid phase. Because of the wide interval here employed for the catalyst concentration, two experimental setups have been used: a basket stirred tank reactor (BSTR) with the liquid phase in batch and an integral fixed-bed reactor (FBR) with co-current upflow of gas and liquid phases. An important influence of the reaction in the bulk liquid was obtained in both types of reactor. This fact has been taken into account in the kinetic model according to different approaches. The first approach was a breakup of the reaction rate in two kinetic expressions, considering the homogeneous and heterogeneous contribution separately; the second approach was empirical where the reaction tate is a potential function of the catalyst concentration. It was found that the extent of reaction in the bulk liquid is also influenced by the catalyst concentration and that the first approach is not able to adequately predict the experimental results. Finally a kinetic model, based on the second approach, was discriminated, with a power law for the catalyst concentration with an order about 0.4. This model fits quite well the experimental data obtained in both experimental setups, BSTR and FBR, throughout the wide range of variables studied.