One-dimensional model of the acid hydrolysis of cellulosic substrates in a solid-liquid cyclone reactor

✍ Scribed by D. S. Burns; A. O. Converse; J. E. Holland; H. E. Grethlein; G. B. Wallis

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 1990
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 788 KB
• Volume: 5
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1615-7605
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00369374

✦ Synopsis

The use of rotating flow in an annulus is investigated as a means of enhancing the yield of glucose and xylose in the acid hydrolysis of cellulosic slurries. A one-dimensional model of such a cyclone reactor is developed for flow cases, co-current and countercurrent flow. For the case of 250 ~ 1% w/w acid, the one-dimensional model indicates an increase in the maximum glucose yield from 48.1% in a plug flow reactor to 69.3% in a co-current cyclone reactor, and up to 81.0% in a countercurrent cyclone reactor. The corresponding xylose yields are 91.6% for co-current operation and 97.7% for countercurrent operation. In the co-current case the maximum glucose and xylose yields do not occur at the same location in the reactor; however, in the countercurrent case they do. Although product yields are dramatically improved over those obtained in a plug flow reactor, the product concentrations are lower than would typically be obtained in a plug flow reactor.