Catalytic distillation in structured packings: Methyl acetate synthesis

Catalytic Distillation can improve process design, the design of column internals requires special attention. The catalytic packing MULTIPAK facilitates effective catalysis, high separation efficiency, and a wide loading range simultaneously. In this work the main characteristics of MULTIPAK—pressure drop, loading range, and separation efficiency—are determined experimentally. The developed nonequilibrium stage model developed reflects the complexity of catalytic distillation processes and comprises correlations describing pressure drop and separation efficiency of MULTIPAK as a function of the operating conditions. The model has been implemented in the simulation environment Aspen Custom Modeler, and the simulation results are compared with experimental data for the synthesis of methyl acetate. This model reflects the process behavior, but differences between simulated results and experimental data can still be observed.