Energy & Fuels, Vol.33, No.5, 4487-4498, 2019
Simultaneous Synthesis and Oxidation of Methanol to Formaldehyde, Thermally Coupled with Cyclohexane Dehydrogenation in a Trifunctional Reactor
Motivated by the energy consumption concerns of today's world, in this study, a novel trifunctional reactor is proposed, in which formaldehyde, methanol, benzene, and hydrogen are produced simultaneously. In this reactor configuration, two exothermic reactions, namely, methanol oxidation and syngas conversion to methanol, and the endothermic reaction of cyclohexane (CH) dehydrogenation are integrated into one reactor. Indeed, the generated heat in the exothermic sides supplies the required energy for the endothermic reaction, resulting in lower and higher temperature average, respectively, in the exothermic and endothermic sides. By considering heat and mass balances, a reliable mathematical model is developed and the feasibility of this reactor configuration is examined. Moreover, the effects of inlet temperature and molar flow rate on the reactor performance are inspected. The results indicate that to reach a formaldehyde yield of almost unity, the inlet temperatures of methanol synthesis, formaldehyde production, and CH dehydrogenation sides should be approximately 511, 493, and 513 K, respectively.