Carbon dioxide delivery to a reactor system is always a bit tricky, especially when the system needs to be maintained at higher pressures. Running up against the liquid state or even super critical conditions only compounds the problem. However, in one of Altamira’s latest systems, we designed the feed system such that gases (including CO2) are fed at pressures well below any possible phase change. Then, to deliver 100 bar conditions to the reactor, we placed a software controlled gas-booster downstream of the low pressure blending. Accurate flow to the reactor itself was accomplished with a mass flow controller directly upstream of the packed bed. Since this system was being designed specifically for low-conversion reactions, a recycle loop sent any unreacted material back to the low pressure blending point, thus saving money for the customer in not losing unreacted material to simple venting. To ensure no pressure build-up in the recycle loop, a customer controlled and automated purge was also included.
Just another example of Altamira’s custom and fully automated solutions….
