Reaction–Transport Regime Analysis for Desulfurization of Gas and Petroleum Streams: An Engineering Diagnostic Framework
Author: Dr. Ahmad Saylam
Document type: Open technical preprint
Publication date:
Scientific status: Engineering diagnostic and screening framework. It supports mechanism-based interpretation, experiment planning and scale-up assessment, but it is not a validated universal reactor-design, catalyst-selection or industrial-performance model.
Preprint DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.20095695
Zenodo record: https://zenodo.org/records/20095696
Abstract
Sulfur removal from natural gas, light hydrocarbons, diesel-range fuels and heavy petroleum fractions is governed not only by intrinsic reaction chemistry but also by adsorption and catalytic surface phenomena, interphase mass transfer, internal diffusion, hydrodynamics, downstream separation and energy input. This paper develops a diagnostic reaction–transport–separation framework for interpreting desulfurization performance across gas- and liquid-phase systems.
Rather than providing an exhaustive review of all desulfurization technologies, representative routes are used to illustrate controlling regimes, including hydrodesulfurization, oxidative desulfurization, catalytic oxidation and sweetening, adsorption and reactive adsorption, and radical-assisted oxidation. Systems are classified as reaction-controlled, external-mass-transfer-limited, internal-diffusion-limited, separation-limited, energy/intensification-limited or mixed using apparent kinetic constants, volumetric mass-transfer coefficients, effectiveness factors, Thiele moduli and Damköhler-type ratios.
Hydrodynamic cavitation is treated as an intensification layer that may improve interfacial renewal, oxidant activation and apparent rates only when these benefits exceed energy, erosion, emulsion and separation penalties. A dimensionless cavitation enhancement factor is proposed to relate apparent-rate improvement to measurable cavitation intensity while avoiding double-counting of physical and chemical effects.
Illustrative oxidative-desulfurization and hydrodesulfurization calculations show how regime analysis prevents overinterpretation of apparent rate constants. The framework provides an engineering basis for selecting hybrid reactors and defining validation requirements for scale-up, including sulfur speciation, closed sulfur balances, independent mass-transfer measurements, catalyst or adsorbent durability, oxidant utilization and energy-normalized sulfur removal.
Scope and evidence boundary
The framework supports early-stage process diagnosis, comparison of controlling mechanisms, experimental planning, sensitivity analysis, preliminary process-intensification assessment and definition of validation requirements.
It should not be used as a substitute for measured kinetic or transport data, final reactor design, catalyst or adsorbent selection, process-safety analysis, techno-economic assessment, regulatory compliance evaluation or an industrial performance guarantee.
Application to a real feed, catalyst, adsorbent, reactor, oxidant, separation process or intensification device requires traceable system-specific data, uncertainty analysis, sulfur-balance closure, durability assessment, process-safety review and representative pilot evidence.
Full text
The open preprint and deposited files are available through the Zenodo record: access the Zenodo record and files .
A companion copy of the primary framework is also maintained in the public engineering repository: open the repository paper .
Recommended preprint citation
Saylam, A. (2026). Reaction–Transport Regime Analysis for Desulfurization of Gas and Petroleum Streams: An Engineering Diagnostic Framework. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20095695
Companion engineering repository
The public repository contains framework documentation, equations, regime classifications, validation guidance, an authoritative illustrative input dataset, executable Python examples and automated scientific and numerical tests.
The repository has its own archival DOI. Cite the preprint DOI above for the scientific paper and the repository DOI below when citing the software and engineering-resource release.
- GitHub repository: desulfurization-reaction-transport-regimes
- Repository DOI — all versions: 10.5281/zenodo.21278796
Related process-intensification framework
The companion process-intensification paper provides incremental, energy-normalized and system-level criteria for assessing whether an intensification technology creates useful process benefit after penalties and uncertainty are considered.