High-pressure reactor for the synthesis of melamine

Abstract

Reactor for the synthesis of melamine from urea, in accordance with the high-pressure non-catalytic process, comprising: a vertical reactor body (1), at least one inlet (2) for the urea melt, a set of heating elements (3), and a central duct (7), said set of heating elements (3) being arranged inside said central duct.

Claims

1. A reactor for the synthesis of melamine from urea, according to a high-pressure non-catalytic process, comprising: a vertical reactor body, at least one inlet for the urea melt, a set of heating elements, and a central duct, wherein: said central duct delimits an inner reaction zone inside said duct, and a peripheral reaction zone around said duct, and said set of heating elements is arranged in the inner reaction zone inside said central duct.

2. The reactor according to claim 1, characterized by comprising no heating element inside said peripheral reaction zone.

3. The reactor according to claim 1, wherein said inlet for the urea melt is connected to a distributor configured to introduce urea into said peripheral reaction zone.

4. The reactor according to claim 3, said distributor being extended around the central duct and comprising urea delivery means which are arranged to introduce urea in a substantially uniform manner and with axial symmetry into said peripheral reaction zone.

5. The reactor according to claim 4, wherein said distributor has a substantially toroidal form.

6. The reactor according to claim 1, wherein a lower end of said central duct is distanced from a base of the set of heating elements, thus defining a liquid recirculation passage between the inner reaction zone and the surrounding peripheral reaction zone.

7. The reactor according to claim 1, wherein said central duct extends, inside the reactor, up to a height lower than the height of the heating elements.

8. The reactor according to claim 1, wherein said central duct is delimited by a substantially cylindrical shell.

9. The reactor according to claim 1, wherein said set of heating elements is a bundle of tubes connected to a tube sheet at the bottom of the reactor.

10. The reactor according to claim 1, wherein the urea inlet is at the base of the peripheral region and is arranged to feed urea with an upward flow, and a recirculation passage is provided at the base of the central duct, in such a way that the reactor operates with an ascending flow in the peripheral reaction zone and a descending flow in the central duct where the heating elements are installed.

11. The reactor according to claim 1, comprising a deflector which is in the form of circular crown and is located at the top of said peripheral reaction zone, said deflector being preferably flat or frusto-conical.

12. The reactor according to claim 11, comprising a header for collecting the melamine, said header being associated with said deflector and configured to collect melamine in a distributed manner along a circumference.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

(1) FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-section of a primary reactor for the high-pressure synthesis of melamine, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention.

(2) FIG. 2 shows a variant of the reactor shown in FIG. 1, according to another embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(3) FIG. 1 shows an example of a reactor which comprises a vertical body 1, an inlet 2 for a urea melt, and a bundle of heating tubes 3 inside a central duct 7, which is delimited by a cylindrical shell 4.

(4) The tubes 3 are fixed to a tubesheet 5 which is located at the bottom of the reactor.

(5) The body 1 and the shell 4 are substantially axially symmetrical; preferably both the body 1 and the shell 4 are cylindrical.

(6) Said shell 4 may be termed a low-pressure inner shell. It remains immersed inside the liquid melamine during operation and is not subject to a substantial difference in pressure.

(7) The top of shell 4 is advantageously lower than the top of the tubes 3, as shown.

(8) The shell 4 also delimits a substantially annular region 8 outside the duct 7. Said region 8 forms a peripheral reaction zone around the central duct 7. In the example of FIG. 1 said region 8 is delimited between the shell 4 and the cylindrical body 1; in other embodiments, however, the outer peripheral bound of said region 8 may be delimited by another low-pressure shell inside the body 1.

(9) The bottom edge of the shell 4 is spaced from the tube plate 5, leaving a passage 9 for recirculation of the liquid.

(10) The urea feed line 2 is connected to a toroidal distributor 10 provided with a plurality of urea distribution holes along its circumference. Thus configured, the distributor 10 introduces urea in a uniform manner into the annular region 8.

(11) Advantageously said urea distributor 10 is at the base of the duct 7, as shown in FIG. 1, in the same region of said recirculation passage 9. In some variants (not shown) the toroidal body of said distributor 10 may be positioned on the outer diameter of the reactor body 1 or outside the reactor itself, so as to be accessible externally.

(12) A diaphragm 6 is advantageously provided at the top of the annular region 8.

(13) Under normal operating conditions, the reactor is almost completely full of liquid, reaching the level 11 as indicated in the figures. The flow line 13 indicates the crude melamine exiting via a suitable header 12. The flow line 14 indicates the gases mainly containing ammonia and CO2 (off-gases) which are extracted from the top of the reactor.

(14) The arrows in FIG. 1 indicate the axially symmetrical recirculating flow which is established inside the reactor. A descending flow is generated inside the central duct 7, said flow entering the base of the annular section 8 via the passage 9, and mixing with the urea feed. An ascending flow is established inside the annular section 8, assisted by the formation of bubbles in the liquid phase. Part of the liquid mass which emerges from the top of the annular section 8, also as a result of the deflector 6, recirculates with a descending flow back into the duct 7 via the open top end of the shell 4.

(15) The conversion of urea into melamine takes place in the zones 7 and 8 in accordance with the known reaction: 6 urea melamine.fwdarw.6 NH.sub.3+3 CO.sub.2 (off-gas).

(16) From FIG. 1 it is possible to better appreciate a number of advantages of the invention and in particular: the diameter of the flange 5 is relatively small, owing to the central arrangement of the tube bundle 3; the circulating flow inside the reactor descends inside the region directly in contact with the heating elements (i.e. inside the duct 7) and ascends inside the annular portion 8.

(17) The reactor has a substantially radial symmetry relative to the axis A. In particular, the duct 7, the annular chamber 8 and the distributor 10 have a substantial radial symmetry relative to said axis A. Therefore, the reactor may be defined axially symmetrical and the flow of the liquid is substantially axially symmetrical.

(18) FIG. 1 shows an embodiment in which the melamine 13 is drawn off at a specific point via the header 12.

(19) In the variant according to FIG. 2, the header for collecting the crude melamine is advantageously formed above the deflector 6, thus allowing uniform collection of the melamine product along the whole circumference of the reactor.

(20) More preferably, a reactor of this embodiment comprises a melamine header 15 having a top peripheral edge 16 positioned above said deflector 6. The melamine emerges through said header 15 and, once reached the edge 16, it flows out onto the deflector 6 which acts as melamine collector. In this embodiment, the collection of melamine takes place in a distributed and substantially axially symmetrical manner along a circumference formed, in the example, by the edge 16. The advantage of an improved symmetry of the flows is thus obtained.