Mohammad Mahdavian - MSc Student of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Tehran
Shohreh Fatemi - Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Tehran

Nowadays, with worldwide increasing demands of the high qualitative gasoline, it is necessary to establish the new naphtha reforming units and develop the traditional units to the high efficiency processes. In this work, according to the recent progresses in naphtha reforming technology, a modeling and simulation of an industrial continuous catalytic reformer is performed. The applied kinetic model is based on Padmavathi model [1] with some modifications on kinetic constants as well as considering deactivation rate of the catalyst during and pressure drop within the reactor. Current model is based on 25 lumped components (including C6 to C10 hydrocarbons) in three categories of Paraffins, Naphthens and Aromatics, by using 60 reactions. The kinetic parameters of the reactions are tuned using data of the outlet temperatures and components flow rates in industrial operating conditions. Validation of the model is carried out using another feed with known composition and comparison with the real product with a good agreement. The model can receive the lump feed properties such ASTM boiling point and specific gravity, then de-lumping and characterization of the feed composition to apply in the mole balance equations and determine the yield, composition and RON of the reformate product. Hydrogen and LPG are the light fraction of the reforming process which are determined in this work. This reformer model could link to HYSYS software for further plant simulation and optimization.

Naphtha reforming, gasoline, high RON, continuous catalytic reformer