Isothermal Continuous Stirred Tank Reactor (CSTRs) : Screencast
Describes the reasons for using a CSTR, presents the mass balances and discusses the unique aspects of CSTRs.
Important Equations:
Mass balances on an isothermal, steady-state CSTR for the irreversible reaction \(A\rightarrow2B\) whose rate is \(n^{th}\) order in \(C_A\).
\[F_{A_{0}} – F_A – kC_{A}^{n}V=0\]
in – out + rate of generation = 0
\[F_{B_{0}} – F_B – 2kC_{A}^{n}V=0\]
where \(F_A\) and \(F_B\) are the molar flow rates (mol/s) of A and B leaving the reactor, respectively, \(F_{A_{0}}\) and \(F_{B_{0}}\) are the molar flow rates (mol/s) of A and B entering the reactor, respectively, \(V\) is the volume of reactor contents (L), \(k\) is the rate constant, and \(C_A\) is the molar concentration of A (mol/L).
These equations use the relations
\(F_A = vC_A\) and \(F_B = vC_B\)
where \(v\) is the volumetric flow rate (L/s). For a liquid-phase system, \(v\) can often be assumed constant.
\[X = \frac{(F_{A_{0}}-F_A)}{F_{A_{0}}}\]
where \(X\) is the fractional conversion.
Percent conversion = 100*\(X\)