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DISTILLATION

OBJECTIVE
To explain the principal of distillation
Describe the basic distillation and unit operation
for a typical distillation column.
Discuss the safety considerations in distillation

INTRODUCTION
Definition:
The process of separating miscible components
utilizing a difference in vapour pressure (boiling
point).
Requirements:
i.
Component of mixture must have distinctive
different boiling point.
ii.
Component to be separated must have
reasonable concentration.
iii. Components must be chemically inert and
thermally stable.
iv. Component should remain in desired liquid or
vapor state with no solids formed.

PHYSICAL BEHAVIOUR OF LIQUID MIXTURE

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CONTINUE

CONTINUE
Distillation works as a separation process through use
of vapor pressure and molecular concentration
differences of miscible component in a mixture.
Vapor pressure: pressure exerted by a liquid against its
surrounding.
Molecular concentration: the amount of molecule in a
mixture of molecules.
Distillation column is a series of continuous exchanges
of heat and mass between liquid and vapor component
in a mixture.
Each exchange occur on a tray or on the surface of a
packing internally located within the distillation
column.

CONTINUE

CONTINUE
High boiler: less volatile components in a mixture
of liquids, lower vapor pressure and higher boiling
point.
Low boiler: component with higher vapor
pressure(lower boiling point) in a liquid mixture.
Assumption made for distillation process:
1. The concentration of components A and B in the
feed stream are assumed to be constant.
2. The separation by distillation of A and B is
assumed to be ideal, which means that the
separation fully obeys Raoults Law.
3. The vapor components A and B obey gas laws and
behave as ideal gases.

1.
2.

3.

Assumption made for distillation process:

The concentration of components A and B in the
feed stream are assumed to be constant.
The separation by distillation of A and B is
assumed to be ideal, which means that the
separation fully obeys Raoults Law.
The vapor components A and B obey gas laws
and behave as ideal gases.

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BASIC DISTILLATION CONFIGURATION

CONTINUE

Contains 3 basic elements:

A reboiler generates high boiler vapor to provide

good vapor liquid contact with the liquid feed to
the column.
A column is used to carry out multiple stage of
separation.
A condenser is used to remove the heat of
vaporization provided by the reboiler.
A partial condenser condenses only the liquid
used as a reflux for the column, so the overhead
make is a vapor.

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PROCESS TECHNOLOGY OF THE UNIT

OPERATION IN DISTILLATION COLMUN

CONTINUE
Feed is introduced in the side of the column.
Low boilers overhead are called make.
High boilers out the bottom are called the tails.
Lower part of the column below the feed tray is
called the stripping section.
Upper part above the feed tray is called the
enrichment/rectification section.

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Feed rate
i.
Feed rate to the column should be constant.
ii.
Amount of feed into column= sum of the
overhead and bottom products
iii. A feed rate that is too high or too low can lead
to inefficient liquid-vapor contact on the trays,
affect the effectiveness of the separation.
iv. Changes in feed rate also has an effect on
column temperatures and pressure at different
points.

Heat input
i.
The latent heat energy added in the reboiler
creates vapor flow from tray to tray up the
length of the column.
ii.
Steam is the source of heat energy.
iii. By controlling the amount of heat added to the
reboiler , the amount of liquid vaporised and
the vapor rate up the column can be controlled.

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CONTINUE

CONTINUE

Reflux
i.
The vapor velocity is stabilized at different feed
rates by recycling a potion of overhead
condensate.
ii.
Reflux increase low boiler concentration
overhead by sending high boilers back down the
column.
iii. Total reflux=all the condensate returned to
the top of column.
iv. Zero reflux=all the condensate is drawn off
and none is returned.

Pressure
i.
An increase in pressure increases the boiling
point of the liquids, therefore the overall
operating temperature of a column goes up as
pressure increased. A decrease in pressure
lowers the boiling point and causes overall
operating temperature drops.
ii.
Pressure increases or decreases vapor density,
which has an effect on vapor liquid contact.

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INSTRUMENTATION

SAFETY CONSIDERATION
Corrosion is common problem where tray and
other components are weakened and may
collapse. Frequent inspection and careful choice of
material is needed.
The column shell is designed to withstand a
pressure much higher than the operating pressure
plus a healthy safety factor.
Pressure relief devices are installed and set below
the design pressure.
Expansion room must be provided in column
design to prevent damage as metal expand when
heated.

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