SCI和EI收录∣中国化工学会会刊

中国化学工程学报 ›› 2022, Vol. 44 ›› Issue (4): 528-542.DOI: 10.1016/j.cjche.2021.03.028

• • 上一篇    

A coupled CFD simulation approach for investigating the pyrolysis process in industrial naphtha thermal cracking furnaces

Mohsen Rezaeimanesh1, Ali Asghar Ghoreyshi1, S.M. Peyghambarzadeh2, Seyed Hassan Hashemabadi3   

  1. 1 Chemical Engineering Department, Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, Shariati Ave., 47148-71167 Babol, Iran;
    2 Department of Chemical Engineering, Mahshahr Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mahshahr, Iran;
    3 Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Research Laboratory, School of Chemical, Petroleum and Gas Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), Tehran, Iran
  • 收稿日期:2020-09-18 修回日期:2021-02-21 出版日期:2022-04-28 发布日期:2022-06-18
  • 通讯作者: Ali Asghar Ghoreyshi,E-mail:aa_ghoreyshi@nit.ac.ir
  • 基金资助:
    The authors greatly acknowledge the support of Bandar-e-Imam petrochemical company (BIPC), Iran, which help the authors provide the industrial data and also their technical support to this research.

A coupled CFD simulation approach for investigating the pyrolysis process in industrial naphtha thermal cracking furnaces

Mohsen Rezaeimanesh1, Ali Asghar Ghoreyshi1, S.M. Peyghambarzadeh2, Seyed Hassan Hashemabadi3   

  1. 1 Chemical Engineering Department, Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, Shariati Ave., 47148-71167 Babol, Iran;
    2 Department of Chemical Engineering, Mahshahr Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mahshahr, Iran;
    3 Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Research Laboratory, School of Chemical, Petroleum and Gas Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), Tehran, Iran
  • Received:2020-09-18 Revised:2021-02-21 Online:2022-04-28 Published:2022-06-18
  • Contact: Ali Asghar Ghoreyshi,E-mail:aa_ghoreyshi@nit.ac.ir
  • Supported by:
    The authors greatly acknowledge the support of Bandar-e-Imam petrochemical company (BIPC), Iran, which help the authors provide the industrial data and also their technical support to this research.

摘要: In the steam thermal cracking of naphtha, the hydrocarbon stream flows inside tubular reactors and is exposed to flames of a series of burners in the firebox. In this paper, a full three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed to investigate the process variables in the firebox and reactor coil of an industrial naphtha furnace. This comprehensive CFD model consists of a standard k-ε turbulence model accompanied by a molecular kinetic reaction for cracking, detailed combustion model, and radiative properties. In order to improve the steam cracking performance, the model is solved using a proposed iterative algorithm. With respect to temperature, product yield and specially propylene-to-ethylene ratio (P/E), the simulation results agreed well with industrial data obtained from a mega olefin plant of a petrochemical complex. The deviation of P/E results from industrial data was less than 2%. The obtained velocity, temperature, and concentration profiles were used to investigate the residence time, coking rate, coke concentration, and some other findings. The coke concentration at coil exit was 1.9 × 10-3 %(mass) and the residence time is calculated to be 0.29 s. The results can be used as a scientific guide for process engineers.

关键词: Naphtha thermal cracking, CFD modeling, Systems engineering, Residence time, Product yield

Abstract: In the steam thermal cracking of naphtha, the hydrocarbon stream flows inside tubular reactors and is exposed to flames of a series of burners in the firebox. In this paper, a full three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed to investigate the process variables in the firebox and reactor coil of an industrial naphtha furnace. This comprehensive CFD model consists of a standard k-ε turbulence model accompanied by a molecular kinetic reaction for cracking, detailed combustion model, and radiative properties. In order to improve the steam cracking performance, the model is solved using a proposed iterative algorithm. With respect to temperature, product yield and specially propylene-to-ethylene ratio (P/E), the simulation results agreed well with industrial data obtained from a mega olefin plant of a petrochemical complex. The deviation of P/E results from industrial data was less than 2%. The obtained velocity, temperature, and concentration profiles were used to investigate the residence time, coking rate, coke concentration, and some other findings. The coke concentration at coil exit was 1.9 × 10-3 %(mass) and the residence time is calculated to be 0.29 s. The results can be used as a scientific guide for process engineers.

Key words: Naphtha thermal cracking, CFD modeling, Systems engineering, Residence time, Product yield