Simulation of Methanol Synthesis in Packed Bed Reactor for Utilization of CO₂ from Acid Gas Removal Unit

University of Indonesia, Chemical Engineering Department, 16424 Depok, Indonesia

^* Coresponding author: bayusa93@gmail.com

Abstract

There are many oil and gas fields in Indonesia which contain high CO₂ that need to be treated. The Acid Gas Removal Unit (AGRU) is installed to remove the CO2. The AGRU will release the CO₂ gas from the regeneration column. It still contains a high concentration of CO₂ (higher than 80%). The accumulation of CO₂ emission to the atmosphere will impact the environment. To promote environment-friendly technology, the process can be improved with conversion of CO₂ into methanol. It will provide a relatively closed loop of the carbon cycle and as a renewable energy alternative. This study aims to provide packed bed reactor design which can be implemented in the small-scale methanol production plant utilizing high CO₂ feed gas. The reactor temperature was varied from 200°C to 250°C and pressure were operated in the range of 40 Bar up to 75 Bar. These variations were used to analyze the effects of methanol production. The simulation results showed that peak methanol production rate was achieved at the temperature around 230°C. As the conclusion, the reactor showed better performance at the higher pressure and higher temperature although the reaction is exothermic including the recycling process can reduce the cost of hydrogen.