Investigation on thermal runaway in batch reactors by parametric sensitivity analysis

A batch system is an inherently parametric sensitivity system where small changes of input parameters can induce large changes of output variables. In the present work, temperature and temperature sensitivity with respect to the initial temperature were investigated by parametric sensitivity analysis using a dimensionless batch reactor model. The influence of the Semenov number, the heat of reaction parameter and the Arrhenius-type number on reactor temperature and temperature sensitivity were studied. It is demonstrated that batch reactors can exhibit high sensitivity when small changes in input parameters lead to large changes in temperature and temperature sensitivity trajectories. A criterion is established for thermal runaway by analyzing temperature sensitivity trajectories and applied to some experimental examples. This criterion allows runaway and safe conditions to be identified, the results being in agreement with the experimental data. The proposed criterion can satisfactorily predict the safety limits of the operating conditions.