Graphical design applied to MTBE and methyl acetate reactive distillation processes

Abstract

Graphical tray-by-tray methods for reactive distillation columns we developed previously are extended to study two industrial processes: MTBE production and methyl acetate production. As both processes involve four components, pr-ejection was used to obtain ternary diagrams by ignoring the inert (n-butane) for MTBE production and by projecting onto planes of constant acetic acid concentrations for methyl acetate production. These projected methods clearly explain the placing that industry uses for. the reaction zones in these processes. Further, it can be visualized why there is an optimum reflux ratio for the methyl acetate process and a value can be quantitatively predicted for it that lies within the range the literature reports.