UNIVERSITY OF MAURITIUS

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING

SECOND SEMESTER/YEARLY EXAMINATIONS

MAY 2009

PROGRAMME BEng (Hons) Chemical and Environmental Engineering /

BEng (Hons) Chemical and Renewable Energy

Engineering

MODULE NAME Reaction Engineering

DATE Thursday MODULE CODE CHE 2005Y(3)

14 May 2009

TIME 13:30 – 15:30 Hours DURATION 2 Hours

NO. OF 5 NO. OF 4
QUESTIONS SET QUESTIONS TO BE
ATTEMPTED

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES

Answer Question 1 (COMPULSORY ) and Any other THREE (3) questions.

Question 1 carries 40 marks and Question 2 – 5, each carries 20 marks.

 REACTION ENGINEERING – CHE 2005Y(3)

Question 1 [COMPULSORY] – [Total 40 marks]

The following reaction is a phase change one, which is carried out isothermally at a
temperature of 300 0K. The total pressure is 101.3 KPa and species D has a vapour
pressure of 16 KPa at the isothermal reaction temperature.

A( g ) + 2 B( g ) → C ( g ) + D( g ,l )
The feed contains only A and B in stoichiometric amounts. The reaction is first-order
with respect to both A and B.

(a) Showing all your calculations, set up the stoichiometric table for the reaction
in terms of molar flow rates. [16 marks]

(b) Calculate the conversion at which condensation begins. [4 marks]

(c) Using the stoichoimetric table set up in (a) above and the ideal gas law,
express the volumetric flow rate (ν) as a function of initial volumetric flow
rate (νo) and conversion (X) only before and after condensation.
[12 marks]
(d) Find an expression of concentration of A (CA) and that of B (CB) in terms of
the initial concentration of A(CAo) and conversion (X) only before and after
condensation. [8 marks]

Question 2

The table below shows the data obtained from a laboratory experiment of the
following reversible isothermal gaseous decomposition reaction A ⇌ 3B. The
reaction was carried out at a temperature of 149 0C and a total pressure of 10 atm.
The initial charge was an equimolar mixture of A and inerts.

X -rA
(mol/dm3.s)
0.0 0.0053
0.1 0.0052
0.2 0.0050
0.3 0.0045
0.4 0.0040
0.5 0.0033
0.6 0.0025
0.7 0.0018
0.8 0.00125
0.85 0.00100
[continued next page]

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 REACTION ENGINEERING – CHE 2005Y(3)

Question 2 [continued]
 1 
(a) Plot a graph of  −  v/s X.
 rA 
[7 marks]

X2
∆x
(b) Using the Simpson’s rule ∫ f (x )dx =
X0
3
[ f (x 0 ) + 4 f (x1 ) + f (x 2 )] , determine the
volumes V1 and V2 of two plug flow reactors arranged in series when the
intermediate conversion is 40% and the final one is 80%. The initial molar
flow rate of A is 0.867 mol/s.
[6 marks]

(c) What will be the volumes of two CSTRs in series to achieve the same
intermediate and final conversions in (b) above?
[4 marks]

(d) Sketch in your plot obtained in (a) above the area which when multiplied by
the initial molar flow rate will represent the volumes necessary for the
following arrangement of reactors.

One CSTR One PFR One CSTR

Where X1= 0.30, X2 = 0.60 and X3 = 0.8

[3 marks]

Question 3

The elementary, homogeneous and reversible reaction A + B ⇌ 2C has a rate law

expressed as below.
 C2 
− rA = k 1  C A C B − C 
 Ke 

The reaction takes place isothermally at 2600 oK in a batch reactor of volume 0.4 dm3
under a pressure of 20 atm. The feed consists of 77% A, 15% B and 8% inerts. The gas
constant R = 0.082 atm.dm3/mol.K and the equilibrium constant Ke is 0.01. If 80% of
equilibrium is reached in 151 µs, determine the forward rate constant using the
Simpson’s rule. The equilibrium conversion Xe is 0.02.
[20 marks]

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 REACTION ENGINEERING – CHE 2005Y(3)

Question 4

A first-order liquid-phase reaction A → B is carried out isothermally in 3 CSTRs of

unequal size connected in series.
C A0
(a) Show that C A3 = .
(1 + τ 1k1 )(1 + τ 2 k 2 )(1 + τ 3 k 3 )
[14 marks]

(b) Hence derive an expression for the final concentration of A when n CSTRs of
equal size are connected in series and are operated at the same temperature.
[3 marks]

(c) Determine the number of 100 dm3-CSTRs required to achieve a minimum

final conversion of A of 80% when the initial concentration of A and
volumetric flow rate are 2.0 mol/dm3 and 100 dm3/min, respectively. The
specific rate constant is 0.311 min-1.
[3 marks]

Question 5

(a) The gas-phase reaction 4 A → B + 6C proceeds isothermally at 227 oC and 4.6

atm with a first-order − rA = (10 / min)C A . What size of plug flow reactor can
produce 75% conversion of feed consisting of 15 mol/min of pure A? The gas
constant R = 0.082 atm.dm3/mol.K.
[10 marks]
X
1 + εX 1
∫0 1 − X dX = (1 + ε )ln 1 − X − εX

(b) The gas-phase 2nd –order reaction A → 2 B + C is carried out in a PFR at an

isothermal temperature of 327 oC and a total pressure of 10 atm. If pure A
enters the reactor with a volumetric flow rate of 5 dm3/s, calculate the volume
of the PFR required to achieve 80% conversion of A. The specific rate constant
is 5.0 dm3/mol.s.
[10 marks]

X
(1 + εX )2 dX (1 + ε ) 2
X
∫0 (1 − X )2 = 2ε (1 + ε ) ln (1 − X ) + ε 2 X +
1− X

END OF QUESTION PAPER

sg/

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