Title | Scaleup of a Single-Mode Microwave Reactor |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2020 |
Authors | Goyal, H, Mehdad, A, Lobo, RF, Stefanidis, GD, Vlachos, DG |
Journal | Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research |
Volume | 59 |
Pagination | 2516-2523 |
Date Published | feb |
ISSN | 15205045 |
Keywords | 7.6, 8.3, Absorption, Electromagnetic radiation, Insulators, Liquids, Power, Project 7.6, Renewable Bioproducts |
Abstract | Widespread use of microwave technology requires quantitative scale-up models. Currently, microwave models are typical qualitative in nature. This work focuses on rendering models quantitative and elucidating the scale-up behavior of microwave heating using numerical simulations. A commonly used bench-scale microwave reactor from the CEM Corp. (CEM Discover SP) is used for benchmarking. To enable quantitative modeling, microwave heating experiments are conducted and compared to COMSOL calculations to develop a calibration curve for the set point vs the actually delivered microwave power. Using the validated computational model, microwave-heating of various liquids in a wide range of vial sizes is investigated. The computational study shows that during the scale-up, the volumetric power absorbed passes through a maximum, whereas the energy efficiency and heating uniformity exhibit strongly nonlinear behavior. This work introduces a method for quantitative microwave models and insights into the scale-up of commercial microwave reactors. |
URL | https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.iecr.9b04491 |
DOI | 10.1021/acs.iecr.9b04491 |