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2-Distillation
13 February 2019 2
Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Introduction
13 February 2019 3
Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Introduction
The vertical cylindrical column provides, in a compact form
and with the minimum of ground requirements, a large
number of separate stages of vaporization and condensation.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Introduction
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
VAPOUR–LIQUID EQUILIBRIUM
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Vapor composition as a function of liquid
composition at constant pressure
For distillation purposes it is more convenient to plot y against
x at a constant pressure, since the majority of industrial
distillations take place at substantially constant pressure.
Positive Azeotrope Negative Azeotrope
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Dalton’s Law
The partial pressure PA of component A in a mixture of vapors is
the pressure that would be exerted by component A at the
same temperature, if present in the same volumetric
concentration as in the mixture.
By Dalton’s law of partial pressures,
P = ΣPA
that is the total pressure is equal to the summation of the partial
pressures. Since in an ideal gas or vapor the partial pressure is
proportional to the mole fraction of the constituent, then:
PA = yAP
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Raoult’s Law
Raoult's Law describes the behavior of vapors above a mixture of
liquids; in an ideal scenario the partial pressure of each component
present in the mixture is equal to its pure vapor pressure multiplied by
its mole fraction in solution.
For an ideal mixture, the partial pressure is related to the concentration
in the liquid phase by Raoult’s law which may be written as:
PA = P◦AxA
where P◦A is the vapor pressure of pure A at the same temperature.
This relation is usually found to be true only for high values of xA, or
correspondingly low values of xB, although mixtures of organic isomers
and some hydrocarbons follow the law closely.
For low values of xA, a linear relation between PA and xA again exists,
although the proportionality factor is Henry’s constant H, and not the
vapor pressure P0A of the pure material.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
For a liquid solute A in a solvent liquid B, Henry’s law takes
the form: PA = HxA
If the mixture follows Raoult’s law, then the vapour pressure of
a mixture may be obtained graphically from a knowledge of
the vapour pressure of the two components.
OA represents the partial pressure
PA of A in a mixture, and CB the
partial pressure of B, with the total
pressure being shown by the line
BA. In a mixture of composition D,
the partial pressure PA is given by
DE, PB by DF, and the total pressure
P by DG
Figure : Partial pressures of ideal mixtures
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Applications of Raoult’s & Dalton’s Law
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example 11.1
The vapour pressures of n-heptane and toluene at 373 K are
106 and 73.7 kN/m2 respectively. What are the mole fractions
of n-heptane in the vapour and in the liquid phase at 373 K if
the total pressure is 101.3 kN/m2?
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Relative volatility
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Relative volatility
Substituting PyA for PA, and PyB for PB:
or
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Relative volatility
Since with a binary mixture yB = 1 − yA, and xB = 1 − xA then:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Relative volatility
Whilst α does vary somewhat with temperature, it remains
remarkably steady for many systems, and a few values to
illustrate this point are given in Table
Differential distillation.
Rectification.
At the end of the process the liquid which has not been vaporized is
removed as the bottom product. The analysis of this process was first
proposed by RAYLEIGH
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Modelling Differential Distillation
S = dS + (S - dS)
xS = ydS + (x - dx)(S - dS)
dS dx
=
S y−x
1/(y – x)
• •
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Differential Distillation
𝑆𝑆 𝑥𝑥 𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 𝑆𝑆 𝑥𝑥 𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑
𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 =∫𝑥𝑥 𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 =∫𝑥𝑥
𝑆𝑆0 0 𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚+𝑐𝑐−𝑥𝑥 𝑆𝑆0 0 𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚−𝑥𝑥+𝑐𝑐
𝑆𝑆 𝑥𝑥 𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑
𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 =∫𝑥𝑥
𝑆𝑆0 0 𝑥𝑥(𝑚𝑚−1)+𝑐𝑐
𝑆𝑆 1 𝑥𝑥 (𝑚𝑚−1)𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑
Multiplying and Divided by (m-1) 𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 = ∫
𝑆𝑆0 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥0 𝑥𝑥(𝑚𝑚−1)+𝑐𝑐
𝑆𝑆 1 𝑥𝑥
𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 = 𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑚 − 1 𝑥𝑥 + 𝑐𝑐 𝑥𝑥0
𝑆𝑆0 𝑚𝑚−1
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Differential Distillation
𝑆𝑆 1 𝑥𝑥
𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 = 𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑚 − 1 𝑥𝑥 + 𝑐𝑐 𝑥𝑥0
𝑆𝑆0 𝑚𝑚−1
𝑆𝑆 1
𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 = [⌊ln(𝑚𝑚 − 1)𝑥𝑥 + 𝑐𝑐⌋ - [𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑚 − 1 𝑥𝑥0 + 𝑐𝑐]]
𝑆𝑆0 𝑚𝑚−1
𝑆𝑆 1 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥+𝑐𝑐]
𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 = 𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙
𝑆𝑆0 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥0+𝑐𝑐]
1
𝑆𝑆 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥+𝑐𝑐] 𝑚𝑚−1
𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 =𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙
𝑆𝑆0 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥0+𝑐𝑐]
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Differential Distillation
1 1
𝑆𝑆 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥+𝑐𝑐] 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑆𝑆 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥+𝑐𝑐] 𝑚𝑚−1
𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 =𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 =
𝑆𝑆0 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥0+𝑐𝑐] 𝑆𝑆0 𝑚𝑚−1 𝑥𝑥0+𝑐𝑐]
In a typical pipe still where, for example, a crude oil might enter at
440 K and at about 900 kN/m2, and leave at 520 K and 400 kN/m2,
some 15 per cent may be vaporized in the process.
The vapor and liquid streams may contain many components in such
an application, although the process may be analyzed simply for a
binary mixture of A and B as follows:
If F = moles per unit time of feed of mole fraction xf of A,
V = moles per unit time of vapor formed with y the mole fraction of A
S = moles per unit time of liquid with x the mole fraction of A,
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Modelling Flash or equilibrium distillation
and for the more volatile component:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example 11.6
An equimolar mixture of benzene and toluene is subjected to
flash distillation at 100 kN/m2 in the separator. Using the
equilibrium data given in Figure 11.9, determine the composition
of the liquid and vapor leaving the separator when the feed is 25
per cent vaporized. For this condition, the boiling point diagram
in Figure 11.10 may be used to determine the temperature of the
exit liquid stream.
The fractional vaporization = V/F = f (say)
The slope of equation is:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example 11.6
and the construction is made as shown in Figure to give
x = 0.42 and y = 0.63.
From the boiling point diagram, in Figure the liquid temperature
when x = 0.42 is seen to be 366.5 K.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example Flash Distillation
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example Flash Distillation
Equilibrium data for benzene-toluene system at 1 bar is given in the Table below
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example Flash Distillation
The operating line equation is as follows, with f = 0.25 (25% of feed is vaporized) and
xF = 0.50 (equimolar mixture, MVC = benzene)
Flash distillation operating line
Locate the first point ( x = xF = 0.50, y = xF = 0.50 ) on the 45o diagonal.
Locate the second point using the operating line equation.
Plot the operating line by joining the 2 points. Intersection between the operating
line and equilibrium curve gives the solution for xB and yD.
xB = 0.44, yD = 0.66
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example Flash Distillation
The separator temperature can be estimate by interpolation or
determined from the equilibrium phase diagram. As shown in the
Figure, this is approximately 92.4 oC.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example Flash Distillation
The same calculations can be repeated for the other scenarios and
the results are tabulated in the following Table:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example Differential Distillation
A liquid feed consisting of 1200 gmoles of mixture containing 30%
naphthalene and 70% dipropylene glycol is differentially distilled at
100 mm Hg pressure and final distillate contains 55% of the feed
solution. The VLE data are:
x 8.4 11.6 28.0 50.6 68.7 80.6 88
y 22.3 41.1 62.9 74.8 80.2 84.4 88
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example Differential Distillation
F xF = D yD,avg + W xW
yD,avg = 0.4882
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Rectification
The fractionating process
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Number of plates required in a
distillation column
In order to develop a method for the design of distillation units to
give the desired fractionation, it is necessary, in the first instance
To develop an approach which enables the necessary number of
trays to be calculated.
The heat and material flows over the trays, the condenser, and the
reboiler must be established.
Thermodynamic data are required to establish how much mass
transfer is needed to establish equilibrium between the streams
leaving each tray.
The required diameter of the column will be dictated by the
necessity to accommodate the desired flowrates, to operate within
the available drop in pressure, while at the same time effecting the
desired degree of mixing of the streams on each tray.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Balance over a Plate
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Heat Balance over a Plate
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Calculation of number of plates
using the Lewis–Sorel method
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Calculation of number of plates
using the Lewis–Sorel method
Similarly, a material balance for
the total streams and for the
more volatile component from
the bottom to above plate m, as
indicated by the loop II and
noting that Lm = Lm+1 gives:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Calculation of number of plates
using the Lewis–Sorel method
Example 11.7
A mixture of benzene and toluene containing 40 mole per cent
benzene is to be separated to give a product containing 90 mole
per cent benzene at the top, and a bottom product containing
not more than 10 mole per cent benzene. The feed enters the
column at its boiling point, and the vapor leaving the column
which is condensed but not cooled, provides reflux and product.
It is proposed to operate the unit with a reflux ratio of 3
kmol/kmol product. It is required to find the number of
theoretical plates needed and the position of entry for the feed.
The equilibrium diagram at 100 kN/m2 is shown in Figure
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Calculation of number of plates
using the Lewis–Sorel method
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Calculation of number of plates
using the Lewis–Sorel method
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Calculation of number of plates
using the Lewis–Sorel method
Thus, the top operating line from equation 11.35 is:
Since the feed is all liquid at its boiling point, this will all run down
as increased reflux to the plate below.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Calculation of number of plates
using the Lewis–Sorel method
The composition xt of the liquid on the top plate is found
from the equilibrium curve and, since it is in equilibrium with
vapor of composition, yt = 0.90, xt = 0.79.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
The method of McCabe and Thiele
Equation
if xm+1 = xw, then:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
The method of McCabe and Thiele
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Plate Efficiency
The number of ideal stages required for a desired separation may
be calculated by one of the methods discussed previously, although
in practice more trays are required than ideal stages
The ratio n/np of the number of ideal stages n to the number of
actual trays np represents the overall efficiency E of the column,
which may be 30–100 %
The main reason for loss in efficiency is that the kinetics for the
rate of approach to equilibrium, and the flow pattern on the plate,
may not permit an equilibrium between the vapor and liquid to be
attained
The proportion of liquid and vapor, and the physical properties of
the mixtures on the trays, will vary up the column, and conditions
on individual trays must be examined (suggested by MURPHREE)
60
13 February 2019 Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Plate Efficiency
For a single ideal tray, the vapor
leaving is in equilibrium with the
liquid leaving, and the ratio of the
actual change in composition
achieved to that which would
occur if equilibrium between yn
and xn were attained is known as
the Murphree plate efficiency EM
the plate efficiency expressed in
vapor and liquid terms is given by:
Flow through feed plate for various feed conditions: (a) feed cold
liquid; (b) feed saturated liquid; (c) feed partially vaporized; (d) feed
saturated vapor; (e) feed superheated vapor.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
The “q”
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Calculation of q
If the feed is a mixture of liquid and vapor, q is the fraction that is
liquid. Such a feed may be produced by an equilibrium flash
operation, so q = 1 - f,
where f is the fraction of the original stream vaporized in the flash.
The value of q for cold-liquid feed is found from the equation
C PL (Tb − TF )
q = 1+
λ
C PV (TF − Td )
For superheated vapor the equation is q = −
λ
where cpL , cpv = specific heats of liquid and vapor, respectively
TF = temperature of feed
Tb ,Td = bubble point and dew point of feed, respectively
λ = heat of vaporization
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Slope of q-Line
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Equation of q-Line
If the two operating lines intersect at a point with coordinates
(xq, yq ), then from equations of operating lines:
Vnyq = Lnxq + Dxd
and: Vmyq = Lmxq − Wxw F
or: yq(Vm − Vn) = (Lm − Ln)xq − (Dxd + Wxw) Vn
n
A material balance over the feed plate gives: Lm
F + Ln + Vm = Lm + Vn Vm
or: Vm − Vn = Lm − Ln − F
A material balance of the more volatile component over the
whole column gives:
Fxf = Dxd + Wxw
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Equation of q-Line
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Limiting Cases
Frequently, when analyzing or designing a process, it is useful to
look at limiting cases to assess the possible values of process
parameters.
In distillation analysis, separation of a pair of components can be
improved by increasing the number of stages while holding reflux
constant, or by increasing the reflux flow for a given number of
stages.
This tradeoff sets up two limiting cases:
Total Reflux (minimum ideal stages)
Minimum Reflux (infinite ideal stages)
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Limiting Cases
The design tradeoff between reflux and stages is the standard
economic optimization problem chemical engineers always
face -- balancing capital costs (the number of trays to be built)
vs. the operating cost (the amount of reflux to be recirculate).
A good design will operate near a cost optimum reflux ratio
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
The importance of the reflux ratio
Influence on the number of plates required
The ratio Ln/D, that is the ratio of the top overflow to the quantity of
product, is denoted by R, and this enables the equation of the
operating line to be expressed in another way, which is often more
convenient. Thus, introducing R in equation
If R is known, the top line is most easily drawn by joining point A (xd, xd )
to B (0, xd/(R + 1)). This will avoid the calculation of the actual flow rates
Ln and Vn, when the number of plates only is to be estimated.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Total Reflux
The total reflux condition represents
operation with no product removal.
All the overhead vapor is condensed
and returned as reflux.
Consequently, the reflux ratio (L/D)
is infinite. This, in turn, makes the
operating lines the 45 degree With
the operating lines on the diagonal.
The operating lines are as far as they can get from the
equilibrium curve,
so if the number of plates are stepped off using the diagonal
and the equilibrium curve,
the number of theoretical stages will be a minimum.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
The number of plates at total reflux.
Fenske’s method
The Fenske Equation is a method for determining the minimum
number of trays required for a given separation. The Fenske
equation applies to distillation systems with constant relative
volatility
d = Distillate
s = Bottom
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Minimum Reflux
Minimum Reflux
The minimum reflux condition
represents the theoretical
opposite of total reflux -- an
infinite number of ideal
separation stages. In this case, the
intersection of the operating lines
lies on the equilibrium curve
itself. Thus, the distance between
the equilibrium curve and the
operating lines is at its minimum, the stepping triangles become
very small, there is no gap between the equilibrium curve and
the intersection point, so you cannot step past the feed point.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Minimum Reflux
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Minimum Reflux
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Minimum Reflux
If the q-line is horizontal as
shown in Figure 11.18, the
enrichment line for minimum
reflux is given by AC, where C
has coordinates (xc, yc). Thus:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Underwood Method for calculating
Minimum Reflux ratio
For ideal mixtures, or where over the concentration range
concerned the relative volatility may be taken as constant, Rm
may be obtained analytically from the physical properties of
the system as discussed by UNDERWOOD
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example 11.9
For the separation of a mixture of benzene and toluene,
considered in Example 11.7, xd = 0.9, xw = 0.1, and xf = 0.4. If the
mean volatility of benzene relative to toluene is 2.4, what is the
number of plates required at total reflux?
Solution
The number of plates at total reflux is given by:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Example 11.9
If the feed is liquid at its boiling point, then the minimum reflux
ratio Rm is given by:
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Selection of economic reflux ratio
The cost of a distillation unit includes
the capital cost of the column
determined largely by the number
and diameter of the plates,
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Selection of economic reflux ratio
The reduction in the required number of plates as R is
increased beyond Rm will tend to reduce the cost of the
column. For a column separating a benzene–toluene mixture,
for example, where xf = 0.79, xd = 0.99 and xw = 0.01, the
numbers of theoretical plates as given by the McCabe–Thiele
method for various values of R are given as follows. The
minimum reflux ratio for this case is 0.81.
The capital cost initially falls since the number of plates falls
off rapidly at this stage.
The capital cost rises at high values of R, since there is then
only a very small reduction in the number of plates, although
the diameter, and hence the area, continually increases
because the vapor load becomes greater. The associated
condenser and reboiler will also be larger and hence more
expensive.
There is no simple relation between Rm and the optimum value,
although practical values are generally 1.1–1.5 times the
minimum
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Multiple feeds and side streams
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Multiple feeds and side streams
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Multiple feeds and sidestreams
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Multiple feeds and sidestreams
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Batch distillation with rectification
Easy to monitor and control. Harder to monitor and control (need to detect
xD on-stream and adjust R accordingly).
Multistage batch distillation with constant R
Given F, xF, xW,final, R and N,
find Dtotal, xD,avg 1
For N = 2 (incl. • •xD,1
1. For an arbitrary set of xD values, reboiler) 2•
draw a series of parallel operating 1
lines, each with slope R/(R+1) • •xD,2
2
2. Step off N stages on each 1 •
operating line to find its • •xD,3
corresponding xW
2
3. Perform numerical •
1• •xD,4
integration:
plot 1/(xD-xW) vs xW
limits: xF, xW,final 2•
Entrainment
Weeping/dumping
Flooding
Foaming
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Vapor Flow Conditions
Entrainment
Entrainment refers to the liquid carried by vapor up to the
tray above and is again caused by high vapor flow rates. It
is detrimental because tray efficiency is reduced: lower
volatile material is carried to a plate holding liquid of
higher volatility. It could also contaminate high purity
distillate. Excessive entrainment can lead to flooding.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Vapor Flow Conditions
Weeping/Dumping
This phenomenon is caused by low vapour flow. The
pressure exerted by the vapour is insufficient to hold up the
liquid on the tray. Therefore, liquid starts to leak through
perforations. Excessive weeping will lead to dumping. That is
the liquid on all trays will crash (dump) through to the base
of the column (via a domino effect) and the column will have
to be re-started. Weeping is indicated by a sharp pressure
drop in the column and reduced separation efficiency.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Vapor Flow Conditions
Flooding
Flooding is brought about by excessive vapor flow, causing
liquid to be entrained in the vapor up the column. The
increased pressure from excessive vapor also backs up the
liquid in the downcomer, causing an increase in liquid holdup
on the plate above. Depending on the degree of flooding, the
maximum capacity of the column may be severely reduced.
Flooding is detected by sharp increases in column differential
pressure and significant decrease in separation efficiency.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Vapor Flow Conditions
Foaming
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Problem
A mixture of water and ethyl alcohol containing 0.16 mole fraction
alcohol is continuously distilled in a plate fractionating column to
give a product containing 0.77 mole fraction alcohol and a waste of
0.02 mole fraction alcohol. It is proposed to withdraw 25 per cent of
the alcohol in the entering stream as a side stream containing 0.50
mole fraction of alcohol. Determine the number of theoretical plates
required and the plate from which the side stream should be
withdrawn if the feed is liquor at its boiling point and a reflux ratio of
2 is used.
Solution
Taking 100 kmol of feed to the column as a basis, 16 kmol of alcohol
enter, and 25 percent, that is 4 kmol, are to be removed in the side
stream. As the side-stream composition is to be 0.5, that stream
contains 8 kmol
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
The slope of the operating line is always L/V and thus the slope in
each part of the column can now be calculated. The top operating
line passes through the point (xd, xd) and has a slope of (27.10/40.65)
= 0.67. This is shown in Figure 11b and it applies until xs = 0.50 where
the slope becomes (19.10/40.65) = 0.47. The operating line in the
bottom of the column applies from xf = 0.16 and passes through the
point (xw, xw) with a slope of (119.10/40.65) = 2.92.
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
The steps corresponding
to the theoretical plates
may be drawn in as
shown, and 8 plates
are required with the
side stream being
withdrawn from the
fourth plate from the top
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
PROBLEM 11.5
A continuous fractionating column, operating at atmospheric
pressure, is to be designed to separate a mixture containing 15.67
per cent CS2 and 84.33 per cent CCl4 into an overhead product
containing 91 per cent CS2 and a waste of 97.3 per cent CCl4 all by
mass. A plate efficiency of 70 per cent and a reflux of 3.16
kmol/kmol of product may be assumed. Using the
following data, determine the number of plates required.
The feed enters at 290 K with a specific heat capacity of 1.7 kJ/kg K
and a boiling point of 336 K. The latent heats of CS2 and CCl4 are
25.9 kJ/kmol.
We get
and and
We get
it may be seen that all such operating lines pass through a common
pole N of coordinates xd and Hd.
The last Equation represents any operating line below the feed plate,
and it shows that all such lines pass through a common pole M of
coordinates xw and Hw. As with the rectifying section, a stream M may
be defined by mass Lm +1 − Vm, composition xw and enthalpy Hw. Thus:
F=M+N
and: F x f = Mxw + Nxd
It therefore follows that phases F, M, and N are on a straight line on
the H − x chart, as shown in Figure
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Dr. Saeed GUL, Department of Chemical Engineering, UET Peshawar, Pakistan
Determination of the number of plates
on the H − x diagram
The determination of the number
of plates necessary for a desired
separation is shown in Figure. The
position of the feed (F, xf) is shown
at F on the boiling line and the
pole N is located as (xd, H’d), where:
(1)
Enthalpy-concentration diagram
• The saturated vapor enthalpy is
(2)
(3)
(4)
Example: Enthalpy-concentration plot for
benzene-toluene
Prepare an enthalpy concentration Plot for benzene-toluene at 1
atm pressure. Equilibrium and physical property data are given.
Example: Enthalpy-concentration plot for
benzene-toluene
Solution:
Choose a reference temperature of T0=80.1°C so that the liquid enthalpy of
pure benzene (xA=1) at the boiling point is zero.
For the first point: Select pure toluene (xA=0).
For liquid toluene at the boiling point of 110.6°C
=1[30820+96.3(80.1-80.1)] + 0
= 30820 kJ/kmol
Selecting xA = 0.5, the boiling point Tb = 92°C and the dew point for yA = 0.5
is Td = 98.8°C from the T-x-y plot.
= 0.5(138.2)(92-80.1)+(1-0.5)(167.5)(92-80.1)
= 1819 kJ/kmol
40000
H vs yA, (saturated vapor)
35000
30000
25000
20000
15000
10000
0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
Mole fraction benzene, xA or yA
The tie line represents the enthalpies and composition of the liquid and
vapor phases in equilibrium.
Procedure to determine the number of
theoretical plates
The procedure to determine the number of theoretical plates is
summarized below.
1. Locate the feed enthalpy and composition
2. Locate xD and xW
𝑸𝑸𝒓𝒓 = HxB – qr / B
reboiler.
xW
xD
So total no of plates for the
distillation column is 9.
qc =113.5(31206)-72.3(139)-41.2(139)=3526100KJ/h
Example
For xB = 0.10, HxB = 4350 from the Figure in slide 9.
The feed is at 54.5°C, using Eq. (1), we have
HF = 0.45(138.2)(54.5-80.1) + (1-0.45)(167.5)(54.5-80.1) = -3929 kJ/kg mol
For qr
(y2, Hy2)
11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
(x , H x )
1 1
ΔB
11 plates, or 10 plates plus 1 reboiler
are needed.