Steady states and dynamic behavior of an LDPE autoclave reactor

A two compartmented autoclave reactor for the polymerization of low density polyethylene is analyzed with respect to the effects of heat transfer and operation variables. Each compartment being considered as a completely mixed cell, two CSTRs model is proposed. The system shows various multiplicity features of steady state and periodic oscillatory motions. Heat removal efficiency and initiator supplement appear to have significant effect on the conversion of monomer with the temperature properly maintained, which should be taken into account in the reactor design.