The Effects of Impeller Characteristics in the Hydrogenation of Aniline on Ru/C Catalyst

Abstract

Effects of impeller characteristics have been studied in the hydrogenation of aniline on Ru/C catalyst. Dual impellers were employed and the experiments were performed at 300 rpm using a lab-scale reactor. Reaction with disk turbines (DT) resulted in the higher cyclohexylamine (CHA) selectivity and higher reaction rate compared to that with pitched blade turbines (PBT). When a combination of PBT and DT impellers was employed, high product selectivity and reaction rate were obtained and the selectivity was maintained constant. Changes in the product selectivity with the impeller geometry were explained in terms of the relative rates of the side reactions depending on the hydrogen concentration in the reaction mixture.