Selection, Sizing, and Modeling of a Trickle Bed Reactor to Produce 1,2 Propanediol from Biodiesel Glycerol Residue

Propylene glycol, also known as 1,2 propanediol, is one of the most important chemicals in industry. It a water-soluble liquid, considered by U.S. Food and Drug Administration safe to manufacture consumer products, including foodstuffs, medicines, cosmetics. This chemical has essential properties, such solvent, moisturizer, or antifreeze, addition low level toxicity. paper aims present selection, simulation, dimensioning trickle bed reactor at laboratory scale. The sizing was validated with other authors. Two predictive models have been for modeling, intrinsic kinetics coupled kinetics, along mass transfer equations wetting catalyst particles. model implemented using Aspen Custom Modeler® (20 Crosby Dr. Bedford, MA 01730, EE. UU.) study behavior terms conversion. results show profiles different variables throughout higher glycerol conversion when added model.