A porous carbon membrane reactor for the homogeneous catalytic hydration of propene

A porous carbon membrane contactor was studied to det. whether such a reactor could be used for homogeneous catalytic reactions. The hydration of propene, catalyzed by an aq. soln. of phosphoric acid, was selected as a suitable model reaction. Expts. at high pressure and temp. were conducted in a lab.-scale gas phase continuous reactor equipped with a flat carbon membrane contactor. It was shown that reasonably stable operation of the reactor could be achieved at high operating pressures by tailoring the porous structure of the carbon membrane and coupling the reactor with an online feedback pressure controller. The reactor operated in a mass transfer limited regime due to mass transfer resistance in the liq. filled membrane pores. Periodic oscillation of transmembrane pressure was shown to reduce mass transfer resistance and considerably improve the overall reactor performance. A dynamic model of the reactor was developed and the results of simulations compared favorably with expts. and the performance of a com. operated conventional reactor employing a supported liq. phase (SLP) catalyst. [on SciFinder (R)]