An industrial investigation into COx formation in p-Xylene oxidation reactor

During the liquid-phase oxidation of P-Xylene, over-oxidation of reactant and solvent to Carbon dioxide and Carbon monoxide is generally known as the burning side reaction. The effect of reaction pressure and temperature on the burning side reaction was studied in this paper. Several tests carried out in an industrial reactor which produces Terephthalic Acid by liquid-phase oxidation of P-Xylene and the experimental data of the burning side reaction were analyzed and reported. The yield of main reaction was kept constant by changing in catalyst concentration. The result showed the rates of burning side reactions are reduced remarkably with decreasing in reactor pressure and temperature. Finally, a direct relation between burning side reaction and reaction pressure and temperature was developed and the model parameters were determined by data fitting of the burning side reaction rate curves.