The simulated moving bed chemical reactor

Abstract A novel method of maintaining a transient cyclic steady state in a fixed bed tubular reactor is examined. This process, the simulated moving bed chemical reactor, utilizes the differences in the thermal and mass velocities of the system to maintain autothermal behavior within the reactor. This system can process low calorific fuels and low temperature feed streams, is insensitive to minor disturbances, and distributes the load evenly over all the catalyst in the bed. This work presents, for the first time, theoretical results concerning the operation of these systems. Both irreversible and reversible reactions are considered, and comparisons are drawn between the new process and the reverse flow reactor.