Simulation of ethylene dichloride thermal cracking process forvinyl chloride monomer production: evaluation of the effect ofoperating conditions

Ethylene dichloride (EDC) thermal cracking process is critical in producing vinyl chloride monomer (VCM).This study simulated the EDC thermal cracking process using Aspen Plus ۱۱ software. This simulationincludes a stoichiometric reactor, quench unit, and two Rad-frac columns for separation and purification.The effect of some operating parameters on the output VCM molar flow (Feed molar flow = ۱۱۱۱ kmol/h)was investigated. The simulation results showed interesting observations about the influence of differentoperational parameters on VCM production. The observed behaviors were analyzed considering pressure,reflux ratio and the number of stages in the columns. It was observed that the increase in the number ofcolumn trays and the reflux ratio can increase the output VCM flow by about ۱۵۱ kmol/h, while the pressureincrease had a negligible effect. Overall, this simulation-based study investigates the influence of operationalvariables in the thermal cracking process of EDC to produce VCM. These findings contribute to a betterunderstanding of the process and provide valuable insights for process optimization, plant design anddecision-making in the chemical industry

Keywords:

Ethylene dichloride , Thermal cracking , Vinyl chloride monomer , Process simulation