Optimized agitator system for production of polyolefin

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10675605-B2
Application number	US-201615537026-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 4, 2016
Priority date	Jan 8, 2015
Publication date	Jun 9, 2020
Grant date	Jun 9, 2020

Abstract

The various embodiments of the present invention relate to a polymerization reactor where the agitator mixing performance is optimized for use with a high activity catalyst and methods for developing the same.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for fluid phase polymerizing a polyethylene polymer or copolymer comprising reacting a polymerization catalyst having an apparent activity between 20,000 m 3 /kmole/sec and 500,000 m 3 /kmole/sec with ethylene, optionally a C 3-12 α-olefin, and hydrogen in an agitated reactor wherein the reactor HUT/BT is greater than 7 and the reactor circulation ratio is between about 7 and about 2000.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactor HUT/BT is from about 7 to about 100.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactor circulation ratio is from about 7 to about 1000.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein 1/the bulk Damkoehler number is between about 6 and about 150.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactor circulation ratio is from about 7 to about 500 and reactor HUT/BT is from about 7 to about 20 and 1/bulk Damkoehler number is from about 6 to about 150.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the power (to operate the agitator)/unit volume (of the reactor) is less than 300 kW/m3.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst is a single site catalyst.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst comprises a single site catalyst of the formula:
(L) n -M-(Y) p
wherein M is selected from Ti, Zr and Hf; L is a monoanionic ligand independently selected from cyclopentadienyl-type ligands, and a heteroatom ligand containing not less than five atoms in total and further containing at least one heteroatom selected from boron, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur and silicon, said heteroatom ligand being sigma or pi-bonded to M, Y is independently selected from activatable ligands; n may be from 1 to 3; and p may be from 1 to 3, provided that the sum of n+p equals the valence state of M, and further provided that two L ligands may be bridged for example by a silyl radical or a C 1-4 alkyl radical, or a mixture thereof.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the α-olefin is present and is selected from propene, butene, hexene, and octene.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactor is a single reactor.

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising a second polymerization reactor.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the agitated reactor is selected from stirred tank, loop reactor static mixer, and static mixer in a loop.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactor temperature is greater than about 110° C.

14. A method for fluid phase polymerizing a polyethylene polymer or copolymer comprising reacting a polymerization catalyst having an apparent activity between 20,000 m 3 /kmole/sec and 500,000 m 3 /kmole/sec with ethylene, optionally a C 3-12 α-olefin, and hydrogen in an agitated reactor wherein the reactor HUT/BT is greater than 4, reactor circulation ratio is between about 7 and about 2000, and the power/unit volume is less than 35 kW/m 3 .

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the reactor HUT/BT is from about 7 to about 100.

16. The method of claim 14 , wherein the reactor circulation ratio is from about 7 to about 1000.

17. The method of claim 14 , wherein 1/the bulk Damkoehler number is between about 6 and about 150.

18. The method of claim 14 , wherein the reactor circulation ratio is from about 7 to about 500 and reactor HUT/BT is from about 4 to about 7 and 1/bulk Damkoehler number is from about 3 to about 50.

19. The method of claim 14 , wherein the power(to operate the agitator)/unit volume (of the reactor) is less than 30 kW/m3.

20. The method of claim 14 , wherein the catalyst is a single site catalyst.

21. The method of claim 14 , wherein the catalyst comprises a single site catalyst of the formula:
(L) n -M-(Y) p
wherein M is selected from Ti, Zr and Hf; L is a monoanionic ligand independently selected from cyclopentadienyl-type ligands, and a heteroatom ligand containing not less than five atoms in total and further containing at least one heteroatom selected from boron, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur and silicon, said heteroatom ligand being sigma or pi-bonded to M, Y is independently selected from activatable ligands; n may be from 1 to 3; and p may be from 1 to 3, provided that the sum of n+p equals the valence state of M, and further provided that two L ligands may be bridged for example by a silyl radical or a C 1-4 alkyl radical, or a mixture thereof.

22. The method of claim 14 , wherein the α-olefin is present and is selected from propene, butene, hexene, and octene.

23. The method of claim 14 , wherein the reactor is an agitated reactor.

24. The method of claim 14 , wherein the reactor is an agitated reactor selected from stirred tank, loop reactor static mixer, and static mixer in a loop.

25. The method of claim 14 , wherein the reactor temperature is greater than about 110° C.

Assignees

• Nova Chem Int Sa

Inventors

• Lacombe Yves
• Clavelle Eric
• Salomons Stephen
• Hawryluk Andrew
• Brown Stephen John
• Walls Marion

Classifications

• C08F4/76

  selected from titanium, zirconium, hafnium, vanadium, niobium or tantalum · CPC title

• C08F210/16

  Copolymers of ethene with alpha-alkenes, e.g. EP rubbers · CPC title

• B01J19/1837 Primary

  Loop-type reactors · CPC title

• C08F2/01 Primary

  characterised by special features of the polymerisation apparatus used · CPC title

• B01J2219/00189

  controlling the stirring velocity · CPC title