Modeling local/periodic temperature variation in catalytic reactions

This paper introduces a dynamic simulation model for investigation of local and transient effects in catalytic reaction systems. More specifically, the model allows inspection of the effects of supplying thermal energy directly to the catalytic particles in stead of applying energy to the whole reactor volume. With simulation results it is shown that for a certain type of catalytic reaction system the obtainable yield of product and the selectivity of the reaction toward that product can be significantly increased when thermal energy is supplied directly to the catalyst. It is also shown that the results can be improved even further by supplying thermal energy periodically in stead of continuously.