There are two technically viable routes to the production of a hydrocarbon solvent, S, starting with feed material A. Route 1 uses a disproportionation reaction, in which feed material A is converted to the desired solvent S and another solvent R, both of which are marketable products. Route 2 starts with the same chemical A but uses a hydrodealkylation reaction to produce the desired solvent. The reaction schemes for each process are shown below.

Assuming that pure A is fed to the process, the solvents S and R are separable by simple distillation, and both are much less volatile than either methane or hydrogen, sketch PFDs for Routes 1 and 2. Which process do you think will be more profitable? Explain your reasoning and assumptions.

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Route 1 2A → S + R Route2 A+ H₂ → S + CHA