Experimental and Modeling Study of a Semi-Continuous Slurry Reactor–Pervaporator System for Isoamyl Acetate Production Using a Commercial Pervaporation Membrane

TL;DR

This study explores a continuous system for producing isoamyl acetate using a reactor and a membrane to improve efficiency and product quality.

Contribution

The work introduces a validated continuous process integrating a slurry reactor and commercial pervaporator for isoamyl acetate synthesis.

Findings

Reactive pervaporation occurs effectively with stable membrane operation and water selectivity.

Conversion and selectivity are influenced by membrane area-to-reactor volume ratio and catalyst loading.

The system demonstrates technical feasibility for continuous isoamyl acetate production.

Abstract

Building on our previous study on batch pervaporation membrane reactors for isoamyl acetate synthesis, this work evaluates a two-step continuous process integrating a slurry reactor and a commercial pervaporator module based on a hybrid silica membrane. The system combines catalytic esterification of acetic acid with isoamyl alcohol with simultaneous water removal to enhance conversion and product selectivity. Operating conditions were defined using experimentally validated thermodynamic, kinetic, and mass-transport models. A hydrodynamic assessment confirmed turbulent flow within the membrane module, and model predictions were compared with experimental data for validation. The results confirmed the occurrence of reactive pervaporation and demonstrated that both the membrane area-to-reactor volume ratio and catalyst loading significantly influence the equilibrium shift. Although conversion remained limited by the available membrane area, the commercial pervaporation unit exhibited stable operation, consistent flux behavior, and effective water selectivity. These findings demonstrate the technical feasibility of the continuous slurry reactor–pervaporator configuration and establish a framework for further optimization and scale-up of isoamyl acetate production via reactive pervaporation.

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