Combination reactor system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9675950-B2
Application number	US-201514604790-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 26, 2015
Priority date	Sep 26, 2011
Publication date	Jun 13, 2017
Grant date	Jun 13, 2017

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a combination reactor system for exothermic reactions comprising a trickle-bed reactor and a shell-and-tube reactor. This combination allows the system to efficiently remove heat while also providing the ability to control both the temperature and/or reaction progression. The trickle-bed reactor removes heat efficiently from the system by utilizing latent heat and does not require the use of a cooling or heating medium. The shell-and-tube reactor is used to further progress the reaction and provides a heat exchanger in order to introduce fluid at the desired temperature in the shell-and-tube reactor. Also, additional reactant or reactants and/or other fluids may be introduced to the shell-and-tube section of the reactor under controlled temperature conditions.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A reactor system for use with an exothermic reaction comprising the hydrogenation of a fluoro-olefin compound, said system comprising in combination,
(a) as a first reactor in the system, a trickle-bed reactor which does not include either a heating or cooling medium, and
(b) as a second reactor in the system, a shell-and-tube reactor which comprises a temperature control system selected from the group consisting of a heating medium, a cooling medium, and both a heating and a cooling medium,
wherein the reactors are separated by a heat exchanger;
wherein the trickle bed reactor comprises a fixed bed of reactor catalyst and two phases in the reactor;
wherein the shell-and-tube reactor comprises a multi-stage, multi-tube, shell-and-tube heat exchanger which contains reactor catalyst in all tubes; and
wherein the reactor system provides for the removal of heat and provides the ability to control reaction temperature and/or reaction progression.

2. The combination reactor system of claim 1 , wherein the heat exchanger is used for removing or adding heat or causing a phase change of a reaction medium.

3. The combination reactor system of claim 1 , wherein the trickle-bed reactor removes heat from the system by utilizing latent heat.

4. The reactor system of claim 1 , wherein the hydrogenation reaction is the conversion of hexafluoropropylene to 1,1,1,2,3,3-hexafluoropropane.

5. The reactor system of claim 1 , wherein the hydrogenation reaction is the conversion of 1,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropene to 1,1,1,2,3-pentafluoropropane.

6. A combination reactor system for use with an exothermic reaction comprising the hydrogenation of a fluoro-olefin compound, said system comprising in combination,
(a) a trickle-bed reactor as the first reactor in the system; and
(b) a shell-and-tube reactor as the second reactor in the system;
wherein the trickle-bed reactor removes heat from the system by utilizing latent heat and does not require the use of a cooling or heating medium;
wherein the shell-and-tube reactor comprises a shell structure and a tubesheet located in the shell structure;
wherein the tubesheet comprises one or more reaction zones and one or more temperature control zones,
wherein each reaction zone comprises a plurality of aligned reaction tubes; and

each temperature control zone comprises a plurality of aligned temperature control tubes;
wherein the reactor system further comprises a heat exchanger in order to introduce materials to the reactors at predetermined temperatures, thereby controlling the reaction conditions in the combination reactor system; and
wherein each reaction zone of the shell-and-tube reactor is adjacent to a temperature control zone.

7. The reactor system of claim 6 , wherein the hydrogenation reaction is the conversion of hexafluoropropylene to 1,1,1,2,3,3-hexafluoropropane.

8. The reactor system of claim 6 , wherein the hydrogenation reaction is the conversion of 1,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropene to 1,1,1,2,3-pentafluoropropane.

Assignees

• Honeywell Int Inc

Inventors

• Chiu Yuon
• Kopkalli Haluk
• Horwath Richard Durick

Classifications

• B01J2208/00929

  Provided with baffles · CPC title

• B01J8/0492

  Feeding reactive fluids (for solid material, see B01J8/0015) · CPC title

• C07C19/08

  containing fluorine · CPC title

• B01J2208/00902

  Nozzle-type feeding elements · CPC title

• B01J8/048

  the beds being superimposed one above the other · CPC title