Gas and liquid distribution in the monolith film flow reactor

The gas‐liquid distribution in a monolith film flow reactor is investigated in the scope of this work. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and a customized liquid collection method have been successfully applied to determine the liquid distribution over the monolith cross‐section. Using a well‐positioned spray nozzle liquid distributor, very uniform distributions are found which address the needs for applications that require high single‐pass conversions. Due to the lack of radial convective flow in monoliths, the initial distribution propagates through the reactor. With a correct positioned spray nozzle distributor, a far more uniform distribution than the “natural” one for trickle beds is obtained. MRI, applied to study the local gas‐liquid distribution in a monolith channel, clearly shows the accumulation of the liquid in the corners of the individual channel with an arc‐shaped gas‐liquid interface. Differences in local liquid holdup over the channel corners were found, which is described as channel scale nonuniformities. The experimental results are in good agreement with a fundamental hydrodynamic model based on the Navier‐Stokes equations. The average liquid saturation is conveniently described with an engineering correlation βL = 6.6·(Fr Ls2/ReLs)0.46, as a function of the liquid phase Reynolds and Froude number.