What are the key design considerations for slurry reactors?

Considerations: catalyst particle size (smaller improves mass transfer but complicates separation), solid loading (higher gives more activity but increases viscosity, affects mass transfer), gas-liquid mass transfer (often rate-limiting, depends on agitation, sparging), liquid-solid mass transfer, heat removal (internal coils, external circulation), catalyst attrition and makeup rate, and product/catalyst separation (settling, filtration, magnetic separation). Hydrodynamics: bubble size distribution, solid suspension, and flow regime. Used for hydrogenation, Fischer-Tropsch, and polymerization.