Thermal instability and runaway criteria: The dangers of disregarding dynamics

Rowena Ball*, Brian F. Gray

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    17 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Two exemplary exothermic processes, synthesis of nitroglycerine in a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) and synthesis of the explosive RDX in a CSTR, are used to demonstrate the dangers of ignoring the system dynamics when defining criteria for thermal criticality or runaway. Stability analyses are necessary to prescribe such criteria, and for these systems prove the presence of dangerous oscillatory thermal instability which cannot be detected using the steady state thermal balances.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)221-226
    Number of pages6
    JournalProcess Safety and Environmental Protection
    Volume91
    Issue number3
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - May 2013

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