Study of stochastic optimization algorithms for evaluation of ethanol oxidation to Acetaldheyde

• Grant number: 07/06808-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: August 01, 2008
• End date: January 31, 2010
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Chemical Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Rubens Maciel Filho
• Grantee: Leonel Moreno Molano
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia Química (FEQ). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The use of green routes for the production of chemicals is actually an area of great interest worldwide. The need to develop and study chemical processes that are entirely independent on petrochemical route is urgent. The acetaldehyde, an important component in many chemical processes, can be obtained by the oxidation of bioethanol. An interest catalyst, either in terms of selectivity and of operational temperatures, to accelarete this reaction is the composed of Fe-Mo. However, the conversion of bioethanol to acetaldehyde is highly dependent on the ratio air/ethanol in the feed and on temperaturepara. At small ratios of air/ethnaol, the conversion is lower, but the separation of products is cheaper, in energetic terms, due to the insertion of less N2 in the process. For higher conversions, high feed ratios are required, which introduces much N2 in the process, turning more expensive the separation process. In this way, this project aims to study the optimiztion of the production of acetaldehyde by bioethanol oxidation in Fe-Mo catalysts. For this purpose, the already developed reactor modeling (in Fortran language)and a comercial simulator will be used to simulate the separation of the products stream in different production scenarios and plant arranjements. Since the modeling of the process is non-linear and aiming to escape from local optima, stochastic optimization algorithms will be used for the search of the operational condition that assures a minimum accepatable production at smaller costs. The stochastic algorithms of Genetic Algorithm, Particle Swarm Optimization and Ant Colony Optimization will be used. (AU)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

MOLANO, Leonel Moreno. Study of stochastic optimization algorithms for the evaluation of oxidation of acetaldehyde. 2010. Master's Dissertation - Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Faculdade de Engenharia Química Campinas, SP.