Analysis and Optimization of Reactant Column with Thermo – Structural Coupled FEA

A reactant column is typically a vertical duct, from which reactant at high pressure is pushed from top to bottom. At the bottom of the column there are holes allowing the reactant to flow out, and mix with the other reactant and chemical process is underway. The advantage of such a design is that the rate of reaction is directly controlled by the pressure in the column, as this indirectly controls the mass flow rate. So more the number of holes more will be efficiency of the process. The design problem is that, typically the holes are the weak regions structurally and in addition they also experience high thermal zones, making them more vulnerable. The thesis focuses on optimizing the location of these holes for maximum structural safety. Also the objective of this paper is to analyze reactant column and determine their strength, and also will be to optimize the design in a manner that all failures can be avoided.