This work presents an experimental study of the saponification reaction of ethyl acetate by sodium hydroxide in a tubular reactor at 1 atmosphere (atm) of pressure. The objective of this study is to analyze the effect of operating conditions on the rate constant and conversion in order to explore the tubular reactor performance. The temperature, reactant flow rate, and residence time are the parameters considered for analyzing the reactor performance. The steady-state conversion is
achieved after a period of 30 minutes. Conversion decreases with the increased reactant flow rate, owing to the resulting decrease in residence time. The rate constant first decreases and then increases with feed flow rate. The rate constant and conversion increase with increased temperature within the studied temperature range. The residence time declines with increased reactants flow rates leading to decreased NaOH conversion. The obtained NaOH conversion values at different temperatures have been compared with literature data. The outcomes of this study may be useful in maximizing the conversion of ethyl acetate saponification reaction for industrial scale synthesis of sodium acetate and ethanol synthesis in a tubular reactor.
Key words: Saponification; Plug flow reactor (PFR); Conductivity
|
