Setting Safe Operation Conditions for Acetyl Chloride Hydrolysis through Dynamic Modelling and Bifurcation Analysis

Acetyl chloride hydrolysis is a highly sensitive exothermic reaction that has presented several industrial safety issues. In the present study, a multiparameter mathematical model, previously developed and applied to simulate the oscillatory thermal behavior of an experimental continuous stirred tank reactor, was used to determine the static/dynamic bifurcation behavior of this reactive system. The values predicted by the model showed good agreement with the experimental data reported in the literature. Full topological classification of its fixed points and iterative maps was obtained: unique solutions (stable and unstable), multiple solutions, cyclic envelope, and bifurcation objects of codimension 1 (e.g., fold and Hopf’s points) and codimension 2 (e.g., cusp and generalized Hopf and Bogdanov-Takens points) have been uncovered. The emphasis of the analysis is to determine safe operating conditions through understanding these topological features and manipulating the reactor design and operating parameters.