A study of chlorobenzene pyrolysis

The pyrolysis of chlorobenzene under dilute atmosphere and quasi-atmospheric pressure was studied at temperatures from 800 to 1150 K using a fused silica jet stirred reactor (JSR) and from 800 to 1250 K in an alumina tubular reactor. Chlorobenzene was chosen as a surrogate to model the thermal decomposition of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). In the jet stirred reactor, a maximum chlorobenzene conversion of 48.5 % was observed at a residence time of 2 s, a temperature of 1150 K and an inlet mole fraction of chlorobenzene of 0.005. The following species were quantified: benzene (the major product), HCl, methane, ethylene, acetylene, biphenyl, 1-, 2- and 3-chlorobiphenyl, biphenylene and six isomers of dichlorobiphenyls. In the tubular reactor, a maximum chlorobenzene conversion of 95% was observed at a temperature of 1250 K under the same conditions as in the jet stirred reactor. The same reaction products were detected but with a larger formation of acetylene and methane and a smaller production of chlorinated and bicyclic compounds. The effect of two H-atom donors, methane and hydrogen, has been investigated in the JSR. Hydrogen addition has a strong inhibiting effect on the formation of chlorinated and bicyclic products. A new detailed kinetic model was developed and gave a good prediction of the global reactivity, the formation of most major products, and the effect of the addition of hydrogen and methane. Flow rate and sensitivity analyses have been made to explain the effect of H-atom donors.