This work presents an integrated reactive-distillation design based on a dividing-wall column (DWC) applied to an industrial case study within AkzoNobel. Remarkably, it is among the first industrial applications of a reactive DWC reported in literature. The benefits of this novel integrated design are the ability to overcome VLE and chemical equilibrium limitations, as well as to separate the main product as high purity side-stream. To solve the problem of a production shift required by market demand changes, we propose an innovative integrated design that combines reaction and separations into one reactive DWC that allows significant savings in capital and operating costs up to 35% and 15%, respectively. Two scenarios are analyzed and the results of the rigorous AspenPlus simulations are provided.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.