discovered_01_2015 - Slant, Spin, Split – How to Get Things Flowing

discovered 01.15 FOCUS WWW.HZDR.DE // Hans-Ulrich Härting, doctoral candidate at HZDR, has built a completely novel chemical reactor. Compared to traditional reactor types, this one achieves significantly higher yields. _TEXT . Sara Schmiedel SLANT, SPIN, SPLIT – HOW TO GET THINGS FLOWING THE ART OF ENGINEERING: Hans-Ulrich Härting is looking to sustain and improve the foundations of our lifes by increasing efficiency in the chemical industry. Photo: André Forner Hans-Ulrich Härting’s prototype is about 1.2 meters long, roughly 10 centimeters in diameter and is made of gleaming stainless steel. Small catalyst particles are firmly fixed inside. While this chemical reactor is significantly smaller than its industrial counterparts, it is quite impressive compared to reactors for study purposes at universities, which are usually just a couple of centimeters in length. And there is another difference – it is the first inclined rotating fixed-bed reactor, a concept developed by Härting’s boss, HZDR scientist Markus Schubert. At the moment, however, the reactor is standing still. ‘We have completed our experiments for now and I am currently writing publications for journals as well as my dissertation,’ says Hans-Ulrich Härting. The engineer is taking a doctorate in process engineering, and he studies how to systematically control flow in chemical reactors. His goal is to achieve optimized reaction control inside the reactor. Chemical reactors need improvement Fixed-bed reactors are actually pretty common; they are used in the chemical and petrochemical industries. These upright cylinders can be as large as five meters in diameter and as tall as some ten meters. They are filled with a catalyst in the form of small beads that facilitates the chemical reactions of various liquids and gases. When gases and liquids flow or trickle through the reactor from top to bottom, chemical

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