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US 12,024,479 B2Granted
Methods for operating ethylene oligomerization reactor systems with an integrated ultrasonic flow meter
AssigneeChevron Phillips Chemical Company LP
InventorsBruce Kreischer, Kendall M. Hurst, Eric D. Schwerdtfeger, Steven M. Bischof, Jared Fern, Kent E. Mitchell, James Hillier
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Methods for determining ethylene concentration in an ethylene oligomerization reactor using an ultrasonic flow meter are described, and these methods are integrated into ethylene oligomerization processes and related oligomerization reactor systems.
Claims24
A process for operating an oligomerization reactor system, the process comprising:
- (I) contacting ethylene, an organic reaction medium, optionally hydrogen, and a catalyst system comprising a heteroatomic ligand chromium compound complex and an organoaluminum compound, or a heteroatomic ligand, a chromium compound, and an organoaluminum compound, in a reactor within the oligomerization reactor system to form an oligomer product;
- (II) discharging an effluent stream containing the oligomer product from the reactor through a reactor discharge line;
- (III) determining an ethylene concentration in the reactor by:
- (i) flowing a reaction mixture through an ultrasonic flow meter integrated into the reactor at a linear velocity in a range from 2 to 15 ft/sec;
- (ii) determining a speed of sound in the reaction mixture from the ultrasonic flow meter;
- and
- (iii) correlating the speed of sound to a standard to determine the ethylene concentration in the reactor;
- and
- (IV) adjusting an ethylene flow rate of the ethylene into the reactor, a catalyst system flow rate of the catalyst system into the reactor, a reaction temperature, a reaction pressure, or any combination thereof, when the ethylene concentration has reached a predetermined level.
6 more elements
A process for operating an oligomerization reactor system, the process comprising:
- (I) contacting ethylene, an organic reaction medium, optionally hydrogen, and a catalyst system comprising a heteroatomic ligand chromium compound complex and an organoaluminum compound, or a heteroatomic ligand, a chromium compound, and an organoaluminum compound, in a reactor within the oligomerization reactor system to form an oligomer product;
- (II) discharging an effluent stream containing the oligomer product from the reactor through a reactor discharge line;
- (III) determining an ethylene concentration in the reactor discharge line by:
- (i) flowing the effluent stream through an ultrasonic flow meter integrated into the reactor discharge line at a linear velocity in a range from 2 to 15 ft/sec;
- (ii) determining a speed of sound in the effluent stream from the ultrasonic flow meter;
- and
- (iii) correlating the speed of sound to a standard to determine the ethylene concentration in the reactor discharge line;
- and
- (IV) adjusting an ethylene flow rate of the ethylene into the reactor, a catalyst system flow rate of the catalyst system into the reactor, a reaction temperature, a reaction pressure, or any combination thereof, when the ethylene concentration has reached a predetermined level.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.