Process Control: Modeling, Design, and Simulation

M11.1. Background

Jacketed batch chemical reactors are often used in the pharmaceutical and specialty chemicals industries. Very often these reactors need to have both “heating” and “cooling” modes. That is, the temperature of a reactor is often ramped up from the ambient reactor charge conditions (near 20°C) to a temperature where the reaction begins to “take off.” If the reaction is exothermic, the heat released through the reaction must be removed by circulating a cold fluid through the jacket.

A common strategy is shown in Figure M11-1, where both hot and cold jacket feed streams are available. Here we have shown a split-range jacket temperature control strategy. When the jacket temperature controller output is between 0 and 50%, the cold ...