Simulation of the effectiveness factor for a tri-lobular catalyst on the hydrodesulfurization of diesel

Typical models to estimate effectiveness factors include sphere, cylinder, slab and strong internal diffusion limitations models. However, a reliable model for complex-irregular catalyst shapes is still lacking. Therefore in this work a new approach is proposed which makes simultaneous use of the 1D and GC models to approximate a 3D problem in order to determine the effectiveness factor of a tri-lobular catalytic on a HDS reaction involving diesel. The restrictive internal diffusion phenomena were examined at the cross-section of the catalyst including the effects of its shape. Simulation for the HDS reaction involved the consideration of a small scale reactor using industrial operating conditions. Effects of the intrinsic kinetic, considering strong internal diffusion effects, were calculated through well established computational algorithms. Mathematical simulations of the reaction effectiveness using a given feed-stock of diesel are described completely for a tri-lobular particle considering organic sulfur compound for molecular diffusion, pore size, shape and radial transport across the section of the catalyst and results were validated with models and data published in the literature of typical analysis.