Dynamic simulation of manufacture of styrene by the catalytic dehydrogenation of ethyl benzene

Styrene is an important chemical compound derived from benzene. It is produced conventionally by the catalytic dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene in the presence of iron oxide catalyst. The reaction is reversible endothermic and is carried out in a series of adiabatic packed bed reactors. The present study deals with the dynamic simulation of the process of styrene manufacture using the Honeywell UniSim design suite. The control parameters of various controllers in the process have been derived using the auto-tune feature of the software. Various scenarios of servo problems were studied. The dynamic behaviour of the process parameters during various scenarios in the operating chemical plant is also studied. The results are very much useful for conducting the hazard analysis of the plant and thereby designing the trip systems of the plant.