MaximaLabs

Ethylene oxide to glycol, with a real competing side reaction

Ethylene and oxygen reacted over competing epoxidation and combustion pathways, condensed, hydrated, and distilled to monoethylene glycol.

Real competing epoxidation/combustion selectivityRealistic ~10% low per-pass ethylene conversionFull EO-to-glycol chain in one connected flowsheet
Ethylene
Oxygen
Mixer
Epoxidation reactor
Combustion side reaction
Cooler
EO condenser
Purge gas
Water
Mixer
Hydration reactor
Cooler
Degas flash
EO vent
MEG column
Water recycle
MEG product

The actual dark-mode canvas: ethylene and oxygen reacted over two competing pathways, EO condensed from the vent gas, hydrated to glycol, and recovered by distillation — the same P&ID symbols you edit in the app.

A real competing side reaction, not idealized selectivity

Low per-pass ethylene conversion (~10%) is realistic — pushing conversion higher would push the competing total-combustion side reaction, modeled here as its own reactor consuming a fixed share of the same ethylene at ~80% EO selectivity, not asserted as a single clean yield.

C2H4+12O2C2H4O(epoxidation,  8% per-pass ethylene conversion)\text{C}_2\text{H}_4 + \tfrac{1}{2}\text{O}_2 \rightarrow \text{C}_2\text{H}_4\text{O} \quad \text{(epoxidation, ~8\% per-pass ethylene conversion)}
C2H4+3O22CO2+2H2O(competing total combustion,  80/20 EO/combustion selectivity)\text{C}_2\text{H}_4 + 3\text{O}_2 \rightarrow 2\text{CO}_2 + 2\text{H}_2\text{O} \quad \text{(competing total combustion, ~80/20 EO/combustion selectivity)}
C2H4O+H2OC2H6O2(hydration, 99% key-component conversion)\text{C}_2\text{H}_4\text{O} + \text{H}_2\text{O} \rightarrow \text{C}_2\text{H}_6\text{O}_2 \quad \text{(hydration, 99\% key-component conversion)}

Unit ops shipped for this vertical

Mixer

Combines multiple streams into one, closing the mass and energy balance.

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Fixed-conversion reactor

A specified per-pass conversion on a key component — the shortcut counterpart to the equilibrium and kinetic reactors.

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Heater / cooler

Duty- or outlet-condition-specified energy-balance stage.

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Flash drum

Single-stage vapor-liquid equilibrium split at a fixed temperature/pressure.

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Distillation column

Wang-Henke MESH column solver — the same rigorous solve at any scale.

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Live plant integration

Stream reactor selectivity, condenser temperature, and MEG column reflux from your plant's OPC-UA server into this flowsheet's twin comparison — deviations from the solved selectivity are flagged automatically.

See the Digital Twin platform →

Try it yourself

  • Real competing epoxidation/combustion selectivity
  • Realistic ~10% low per-pass ethylene conversion
  • Full EO-to-glycol chain in one connected flowsheet

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