MISURATA UNIVERSITY– FACULITY OF ENGINEERING

MISURATA – LIBYA

Lecture 3
Prof. Dr. Jamal Saleh Yassin
Email: jamal.yassin@eng.misuratau.edu.ly
 MEE Process
Multi-Effect Evaporation (MEE) or Multi-Effect Distillation (MED)
is a low-temperature thermal process of distillation that includes
multiple stages of effects. Potable water is produced by collecting
the vapor of contaminated salts or seawater on boiling it through
a series of effects or vessels. Each of stage is maintained at a
lower temperature than the previous one. With the help of
steam, saline water is heated, and evaporation takes place in
tubes in all of the stages. Some quantity of water starts
evaporating, and then steam enters into the tubes of the next
stage to heat and evaporate more water content.
During evaporation in the MED process, when pressure decreases
(i.e., boiling point decreases), the latent heat released by vapor
in the first stage is used to heat the saline water in the next stage
of distillation. The most basic fact is that both pressure and
temperature are very high such that condensation of vapor takes
place.

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 Single-Effect Evaporation
The single-effect evaporation (SEE) system for seawater
desalination has no practical use on an industrial
scale. This is because the system has a thermal
performance ratio of less than 1, i.e. the mass of water
produced is less than the mass of heating steam used
to operate the system.
However, the understanding of this process is essential
as it is a constituent of other single-effect vapour
compression systems, as well as multiple-effect
evaporation processes . The main components of the
unit are the evaporator, feed preheater or down
condenser, the vacuum system and the pumping units.

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Temperature profiles in evaporator and condenser of
the single-effect evaporation system

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 Modeling of the Single-Effect Evaporator
Modeling and analysis of the evaporator can be based on a detailed set of
equations that utilize a number of correlations to determine the heat
transfer coefficient, thermodynamic losses, and physical properties of
water and vapor. Solution of the detailed model requires an iterative
procedure because of the non-linearity of the model equations and
correlations.
The model can be simplified by assuming constant physical properties,
negligible heat losses to the surroundings, constant thermodynamic
losses and a constant overall heat transfer coefficient. This assumption
reduces the model to a set of material and energy balance equations,
which can be used for design or simulation .
The model for the SEE system is divided into:
1. Material balances.
2. Evaporator and condenser energy balances.
3. Boiling point elevation and thermodynamic losses.
4. Evaporator and condenser heat transfer.

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 Multiple Effect Evaporation
Industrial MED systems include up to 12 evaporation effects,
where evaporation in the first effect is driven by heat steam
extracted from cogeneration boilers. The vapour formed in
the first effect is used to drive evaporation in the second
effect. This process continues in subsequent effects until
the vapour temperature drops to about 30–40◦C.
Most industrial MED systems are designed to operate in dual
mode, i.e. standalone, where it is driven by heating steam
from the boiler, or in a thermal vapour compression mode,
where part of the vapour formed in the last effect is
compressed to the desired temperature and used to drive
evaporation in the first effect.

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Schematic of MED/TVC with thermal vapour compression

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Parallel Feed Multiple Effect Evaporation
Schematic of MEE parallel flow

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Schematic of MEE parallel/cross flow

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Mathematical model of the MEE parallel flow

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Mathematical Model of the MEE Parallel/Cross Flow

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 ‫شكرا على حسن االهتمام‬
‫وآخر دعوانا أن الحمد هلل رب العالمين‬

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