Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
Introduction to reaction vessels
• The vessels are designed to carry out unit processes.
✓ Hydrogenation
✓ Esterification
✓ Halogenation
✓ Alkylation
✓ And many more
• But following unit operations may also be carried out in
them.
✓ Mixing
✓ Extraction
✓ Crystallization
✓ And many more
• Operating conditions for a typical reaction vessel.
✓ High to low temperatures.
✓ High to low pressures
• Reaction vessels are often indicated by their capacity in
terms of volumes.
✓ 1 𝑚3 to 20 𝑚3
✓ Fermenters can be of 100 𝑚3
• Reaction vessels often require-
✓ Heating
✓ Cooling
✓ Good mixing
Page 1 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
• The reaction vessel due to its operation is designed as a
pressure vessel-
✓ May be under pressure or a vacuum
✓ May be subjected to external pressure of utilities.
For example, saturated steam (200𝑂 𝐶, 16 𝑏𝑎𝑟) may be
used for heating.
• The recommended heads for reaction vessels.
✓ Torrispherical
✓ Elliptical
• Nozzles and openings-
✓ Inlets
✓ Outlets
✓ Sight glass
✓ Thermowell
✓ Handholes
✓ Manholes
• Recommend joints-
✓ Flanged joints as the head may have to be removed
frequently.
✓ Gaskets with tongue and groove or male and female
facing.
• Material of construction for reaction vessels-
✓ Common materials-
1. Carbon steel
2. Stainless steel
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Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
✓ In special cases, non-ferrous metals-
1. Copper
2. Nickel
3. Aluminium
4. Titanium
✓ At moderate pressures and temperatures-
1. Glass reinforced polyesters
2. Glass filled furons
3. Polypropylene
4. Low-density polyethene
5. Polyvinyl chloride reinforced with FRP
✓ Cost-saving options-
1. Fabrication of the vessel with low-cost metal and
then cladding with corrosion-resistant metals.
2. Vessels can also be lined with lead, rubber, glass,
and plastics to prevent corrosion.
• Agitation of the reaction vessel contents is required in
almost every operations involving reaction vessels.
✓ Two objectives of agitation-
1. Good mixing of the contents of the reaction vessel.
2. Creating turbulence in the reaction vessel.
This gives high heat and mass transfer rates.
• The ratio of the depth of the liquid in the vessel to the
vessel diameter is called the filling ratio.
✓ Normally it is between 0.5 to 1.5
Page 3 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
Ratio of 1 is very common
For the case of dispersing gas in liquid, this ratio can
be kept 2.
• Flat or cone bottoms should be avoided.
✓ Due to low agitation effciencies in the corners formed
Classification of reaction vessels
• Three catogries of reaction vessels.
1. Batch reaction vessels
2. Semi-batch reaction vessels
3. Continuous reaction vessels
Batch reaction vessels
• Almost exclusively used for liquid phase reactions
• The reactants are added to the empty vessel and then
contents are removed after reaction.
• Batch reaction vessels operates under unsteady state
conditions.
✓ Temperature changes with time.
✓ Concentration of the reactants change with time.
Semi-batch reaction vessels
• One of the reactant is initially charged batch-wise.
• The other reactant is continuously fed into the reactor.
Continuous reaction vessels
• The reactants are continuously fed into the reactor.
• The products are continuously taken out from the reactor.
Page 4 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
Heating and Cooling systems
• Chemical reactions taking place in the reaction vessel may
be-
1. Exothermic
2. Endothermic
✓ If the reaction is exothermic then, the liberated heat
has to be removed.
✓ If the reaction is endothermic then, heat has to be
supplied from outside.
• The rate of heat transfer in this case depends on the
following-
✓ Physical properties of the contents in the vessel.
✓ Physical properties of the heating and cooling media.
✓ The vessel geometry
✓ The material and thickness of the vessel wall
✓ The degree of agitation.
• If the contents of the reaction vessel are to be heated then,
a heating system is required.
• If heat is to be removed from the reaction vessel then, a
cooling system is required.
Heating system
• The heating systems are of the following types-
✓ Direct type
✓ Indirect type
Page 5 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
• In the direct type, the vessel contents are direcly heated
by electical methods.
✓ The mostly used electric methods are-
1. Resistance heating
2. Inductance heating
✓ Problems with direct heating methods-
1. Overall efficiency is low.
2. High operating cost.
• In the indirect type, heat is received from various fluids-
✓ Steam
✓ Hot oil
✓ Hot water
✓ Gas or air
✓ Molten salt-mixtures
✓ Special organic compunds-
These are high-boiling materials so that the heat
transfer systems can be operated at low pressures.
o Downtherm
o Marlotherm
o Therminol
✓ Both oil and liquid phase heat transfer systems are used.
o In liquid system, heat is transferred from sensible
heat.
o In vapor system, heat is transferred from latent
heat.
Page 6 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
✓ The fluid is supplied in the following two way.
o Through a jacket-
It surrounds the vessel wall
o Through an internal equipment
Helical coils
Spiral coils
Plate baffles
Tube baffles
✓ The heat transfer coefficients in the heating system can
be increased by
o Increasing the fluid velocity is the jacket or the
internal equipment.
o Agitating the contents of the reaction vessel.
✓ Mostly in heat systems, external jackets are used-
o In the majority of cases, heat is supplied by the
condensation of vapors.
o For a given heat transfer area, there is a greater space
in the jacket rather than a coil.
o This facilitates an easy drainage of the condensed
liquid.
Cooling systems
• They are mostly of the indirect type.
• Fluids (coolants) that are commonly used are-
✓ Liquid ammonia
✓ Water or brine
Page 7 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
✓ Oil and organic compounds
✓ Air
• Mostly internal equipment are used in cooling systems.
✓ High turbulence is achieved when the coolant is
pumped through a coil rather than through a jacket.
▪ Basically, cooling coils are non-removable
▪ They require adequate support
✓ Plate baffles have the following advantages-
▪ Ease in cleaning
▪ Provide large heat transfer area.
✓ Tube bundles-
▪ Better choice when a highly exothermic reaction
is expected in the reaction vessel.
▪ Multiple tube bundles can be used if required.
▪ Tube bundles also play the role of baffles.
Jackets
• Following is the list of designs available for jackets.
1. Plain jacket (Shown in Figure 3.1)
a. Used for steam
b. The space between the vessel wall and the jacket shell
should be narrow.
This gives good heat transfer rates.
Page 8 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
Figure 3.1 Plain Jacket
2. Dimpled jacket (Figure 3.2)
a. Helps in reducing the thickness of the shell.
b. Suitable for large vessels
c. Generally used for providing heat by condensing
vapors.
Figure 3.2 Dimpled Jacket
Page 9 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
3. Channel jacket (Figure 3.3)
a. Gives high velocities for the fluid circulating through
it.
Figure 3.3 Channel Jacket
4. Tube jacket (Figure 3.4)
a. Gives high velocities for the fluid circulating through
it.
Figure 3.4 Tube Jacket
Page 10 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
5. Tube with copper strip support jacket
a. Gives high velocities for the fluid circulating through
it.
Figure 3.4 Tube Jacket
6. Half coil or limpet jacket (Figure 3.5)
a. Gives high velocities for the fluid circulating
through it.
Figure 3.5 Limpet Jacket
Page 11 of 12
Chemical Engineering Equipment Design
Lecture notes for Module No. 3
Prof. A. K. Bandsode
7. Overlapped cut coil jacket Figure 3.6
a. Gives high velocities for the fluid circulating
through it
Figure 3.5 Limpet Jacket
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