Development of a continuous kinetic model for visbreaking reactions

In this study the kinetic modeling of visbreaking reactions for a number of vacuum residue feeds was investigated using available experimental data from the literature. A continuous lumping model was developed for kinetic analysis of visbreaking reactions. The normalized boiling point was used to describe each feed as a continuous mixture and the concentration distribution of the mixture would change under reaction conditions. A continuous model with five adjustable parameters was used to describe visbreaking reactions, and these parameters were optimized for each feed for reaction temperatures in the range of 400–430 °C using available experimental data. The model was able to accurately predict the weight percent of each boiling cut in the reaction products.