Experimental, Kinetics, and Reactor Modeling Studies of the Direct Dehydrogenation of Ethylbenzene to Styrene in the Fixed-Bed Reactor

The direct dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene to styrene is an industrially important chemical reaction that has attracted significant attention. In this study, a mesoporous PBN/cordierite-supported catalyst is prepared, and the experiments are performed in the absence of steam and oxygen using a fixed-bed reactor at different reaction temperatures and ethylbenzene inlet partial pressures. Then, a two-dimensional reaction kinetics and reactor coupled model is developed. The apparent reaction rate constants and adsorption parameters are calibrated and validated. The developed model accurately captures the trend of the yield of each product component and can be applied to optimize the operating conditions. It is found that the maximum production of styrene is 0.341 kmol/m3/h when the reaction temperature, flow rate, and ethylbenzene inlet partial pressure are 873.15 K, 109 mL/min, and 9350 Pa, respectively. The developed coupled model has great potential in the optimal design of direct dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene to styrene.