A Model for the Phosphorus Dynamics of VPO Catalysts during the Selective Oxidation of <i>n</i>‐Butane to Maleic Anhydride in a Tubular Reactor

Abstract

Abstract A model for the phosphorus dynamics in vanadium‐phosphorus oxide (VPO) catalysts for the oxidation of n ‐butane to maleic anhydride was developed. According to the model, reversible sorption processes determine the phosphorus content of the catalyst. Simulations reveal that several phenomena can be successfully described. If no phosphorus is added to the reactant feed, the catalytic activity increases until runaway occurs. With addition of a proper amount of phosphorus, the loss can be compensated while excessive phosphorus addition results in complete catalyst deactivation. Adjusting the model parameters to experimental data may result in a model that can be used to optimize the performance of maleic anhydride reactors.