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.