Kinetic Model for Soybean Oil Hydrogenation Using Loop Reactor.

Abstract

A kinetic model including isomerization of fatty acids for soybean oil hydrogenation considering the adsorption of fatty acids on the catalyst surface affecting the hydrogenation rate has been evaluated in this study. The hydrogenation of soybean oil was conducted in a 12 1 Ioop reactor equipped with a venturi nozzle. A reduced nickel catalyst was adopted. The hydrogenation experiment was carried out an experimental design with respect to reaction temperature, flow rate of catalyst-oil mixture, hydrogen pressure and reaction time. Adsorption of fatty acids including trans-acids on the surface of the reduced nickel catalyst significantly affected the reaction rate of the hydrogenation. The adsorption equilibrium coefficients of linolenic and linoleic acids were much greater than those of oleic and elaidic acids, which indicated that the former acids were hydrogenated faster than the latter acids. The time course of fatty acid concentration calculated from the hydrogenation rate constant derived from the kinetic model proposed in this study was in good agreement witb those obtained from experiments. The kinetic model explained the hydrogenation totally with consideration of trans-acid formation.

Kinetic and Reactor Modeling of Catalytic Hydrotreatment of Vegetable Oils

“…There are few models to describe the reactor performance during the hydrotreating of vegetable oils. The first models were focused on the hydrogenation of unsaturated compounds present in bio-oils. − Velez established a conceptual industrial reactor design for hydrotreatment based on experiments with refined, bleached, and deodorized palm oil (RBDPO) by studying two cases on avoiding hot spots higher than 370 °C to control excessive product cracking and considering the flow as ideal. The molar balance equation for compound i considers the temperature and liquid residence time by the kinetic model presented in Table and does not take into account any mass-transfer effect. …”