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Methanol (also known as wood alcohol and methyl alcohol) is used as a raw material in the manufacture of formaldehyde, acetic acid, and a number of other chemicals. One way it can be synthesized is by reacting carbon dioxide and hydrogen:
CO2 + 3H2?CH3OH + H2O
The fresh feed to a methanol synthesis process contains hydrogen, carbon dioxide and 0.4 mole% inerts. The reactor effluent passes to a condenser that removes essentially all of the methanol and water formed and none of the reactants or products. The latter substances are recycled to the reactor. To avoid buildup of the inerts in the system, a purge stream is withdrawn from the recycle. The feed to the reactor (not fresh feed to the process) contains 28 mole% CO2, 70 mole% H2, and 2 mole% inerts. The single pass conversion of hydrogen is 60%. Calculate the molar flow rates and molar compositions of the fresh feed, the total feed to the reactor, the recycle stream and the purge stream for a methanol production rate of 110 kmol/h.