A novel reactor concept for thermal integration of naphtha reforming with propane ammoxidation

In this study, propane ammoxidation as an exothermic process is thermally coupled with the endothermic naphtha reforming process which resulted in the elimination of the naphtha reforming furnaces. Both processes are available in petrochemical plants. Naphtha reforming produces aromatics (BTX, Toluene, Ethylbenzene) as well as hydrogen, while propane ammoxidation reactions on V-Sb-Al oxide catalyst produce acrylonitrile (ACN) as the main product which is a known intermediate for the production of various polymers and polyamides. In addition to energy saving, the aromatics production in the proposed scheme increased by 10% compared to conventional naphtha reforming (CNR). Furthermore, the effect of operating temperature, the number of tubes of the reactors, and the inlet molar flow rate of propane on the hydrogen production and aromatics yield in the naphtha reforming process have been investigated.