Continuous preparation of activated carbon supported zinc acetate catalyst and industrial synthesis of vinyl acetate from acetylene

Abstract

AbstractA continuous manufacturing method of an activated carbon supported zinc acetate catalyst has been established. Based on the dipping of a crushed activated palm carbon into a zinc acetate aqueous solution, the catalyst is prepared for the synthesis of vinyl acetate from acetylene in an industrial fluidized reaction vessel.The relationship between the supported amount of zinc acetate and various factors has been studied. Based on these results, an empirical formula was developed. Using this formula, the continuous manufacturing apparatus was designed and constructed for the purpose of preparing the optimum supported fluidized catalyst. To minimize the activated carbon loss due to crushing and wearing, a vibrating conveyor system was employed.This continuous manufacturing process produced a uniform catalyst with an activated carbon feed rate of 0.25 m3 h−1. Using this catalyst, a series of operational tests of the vinyl acetate synthesis was performed for investigating the optimum reaction conditions. These operational tests were carried out using an industrial fluidized reaction vessel of 3.28 m diameter and 50 tons day−1 vinyl acetate production capacity. Based on these test results, the reaction rate constant and the deterioration rate constant were newly introduced, and the optimum operation conditions were then determined.