International Journal of Advances in Scientific Research and Engineering (ijasre) E-ISSN : 2454-8006 DOI: 10.31695/IJASRE.2020.33922 Volume 6, Issue 12 December - 2020 www.ijasre.net Page 83 Licensed Under Creative Commons Attribution CC BY-NC Simulation and Modeling of an Integrated Process Route for the Synthesis of Vinyl Chloride Monomer from Acetylene: Factorial Design Method and Artificial Neural Network 1* Akintola, J.T., 1 Ayoola, A.I., 2 Abdulkareem, Y.T., 3 Akintola, O.E., 3 Etisioro, C.O 1 Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Lagos, Akoka, Nigeria 2 Department of Chemical Engineering, Lagos State University, Epe, Nigeria 3 Department of Statistics, Yaba College of Technology, Yaba, Lagos, Nigeria _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT Vinyl Chloride gas is a nonirritating and colorless substance. It is usually colorless at a concentration lower than 3900 ppm (10,000 mg/m3). Vinyl Chloride is simply compressed to liquid for storage and shipping. At a concentration between 200 and 500 mg/m3, a Sweetish odor of Vinyl Chloride may be detected. This research paper is focused on the simulation of an integrated process route for the synthesis of Vinyl chloride Monomer from Acetylene via Aspen Hysys Simulation as well as the Factorial Design of the experiment with MINITAB 17.0. Fit Regression and Artificial Neural Network were employed for the modeling of the responses. Molar flow rates of acetylene (C2H2) and hydrogen chloride (HCl) predicts the conversions of acetylene and hydrogen chloride. A recycle unit is added to the process flow diagram and the maximum conversion of C2H2 and HCl is found to be 99.90 and 99.80 %, respectively. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) gives the results of the statistical correlation between the independent variables and response variables. The simulation and modeling results reveal that the Artificial Neural Network model gives better prediction and analysis of the process route with correlation coefficient (R squared values) of 97.921 % and 98.423 % for the conversion of C2H2 and conversion of HCl, respectively compared to the Factorial Design Method model with R squared values value of 79.47 % and 73.70 % for the conversion of C2H2 and conversion of HCl, respectively. Keywords: Vinyl chloride Monomer, Conversion, Aspen Hysys simulation, Factorial Design Method, Artificial Neural Network. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Vinyl Chloride Vinyl chloride (VC) is a nonirritating, colourless gas at standard temperature and pressure. It is generally odorless below 10 000 mg/m 3 (3900 ppm), but a sweetish odour may be detected by some sensitive individuals between 200 and 500 mg/m 3 . The gas is liquefied under pressure with ease and is frequently stored or shipped as a liquid [1]. Vinyl chloride is highly stable in the absence of sunlight or oxygen. Above 400 °C, it dissociates into acetylene and hydrochlorine. In the atmosphere, VC reacts with hydroxyl radicals and ozone, ultimately forming formaldehyde, carbon monoxide, hydrochloric acid and formic acid. On the basis of measured reaction rates with hydroxyl radicals and their concentration in air, it is estimated that the half-time of VC in the atmosphere is about 20 hours [2]. Vinyl chloride, essentially all of which is used to synthesize poly (vinyl chloride) and vinyl chloride copolymers, is the chief tonnage organochlorine compound produced, with the exclusion of its precursor, ethylene dichloride. Vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) finds its chief sources in order of significance from VC production plants, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) polymerization infrastructures, and plants where PVC products are fabricated. Minor sources include storage and handling facilities for VC and PVC and plants producing ethylene diamine or ethylene dichloride. VC emissions have been reported from municipal landfills in the United States, but the precise source of emission is uncertain and