economic analysis and conceptual modeling of ethylbenzene production

Ethyl benzene is present in small amounts in crude oil and in addition to making styrene, it has other uses such as making acetone, diethyl benzene, cellulose acetate, etc. demand for ethylbenzene in the world is growing at an average annual rate of 4.3% and is projected to reach about 30 million tonnes in 2025. in this manuscript, the conceptual design of ethyl benzene process is studied. the mathematical calculation of various equipment and economic analysis were carried out, the results show that the return on investment is 53% and the project is fully justified economically. the total energy cost, capital cost and total annual cost for this process based on volume of 150 m3 are 0.776, 4.81 and 2.39 $0.22*106/year, respectively. it is highly recommended to study this plan in detail, considering the current situation in iran in terms of production of oil derivatives.