STUDIES ON PALLADIUM MEMBRANE REACTOR FOR DEHYDROGENATION REACTION

In current industrial practice dehydrogenation reactions require high temperatures and large amounts of inert (usually steam). Membrane reactors can be used to shift the equilibrium for these reversible reactions by removing products from the reaction zone. In this paper, experimental results will be presented for a palladium reactor system designed to investigate the feasibility of using palladium (Pd) alloy as the membrane material. Experiments have been conducted for isothermal and adiabatic conditions with air on the permeation side, wherein the oxygen reacts exothermically with the permeating hydrogen to decrease its partial pressure, thereby increasing its flux, and provide heat for the endothermic dehydrogenation reaction. Both theoretical and experimental results have been presented for dehydrogenation of 1-butene.