Distillation Technology
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Distillation Technology GEA Wiegand GmbH 15007_brs_destillation_Umschl_en.indd 1 18.02.2009 13:54:11 Uhr

Distillation Technology Research and Development The separation or extraction of individual substances from liquid mixtures has been practised for centuries, most notably for the production of alcohol. Distillation and rectification technologies are consequently applied as follows: Ongoing research and development combined with the experience of many installed refer- Distillation is the separation of the constituents of a liquid mixture ences enables GEA Wiegand to by partial vaporization and subsequent condensation, taking ad- provide wide-ranging technical vantage of differences in...

Applications for GEA Wiegand Distillation Plants The following list shows typical applications Alternative Fuels for GEA Wiegand distillation plants. New applications are investigated and ana- Production of bioethanol as a fuel additive lysed on an ongoing basis at our Research Dehydration of ethanol by means of molecular sieves and Development Centre. or entrainer distillation Refining of regeneration alcohol/entrainers from the dehydration process Refining of glycerine and methanol from biodiesel production Beverage Alcohol Complete plants and plant components for the production of raw...

Plant Components Columns Columns form the core of any distillation plant. Overhead product They are adapted to each application by the design and selection of different column internals. Computer modelling and pilot testing forms the basis of reliable designs. Reflux Distributor Packing Liquid collector Feed Trays Downcomer Steam reboiler inlet Bottom product 4

Pr ice + – + + Bubble cap tray – + o – Structured packing – + – + Tunnel cap tray – + o – Lo ad Sieve tray Cl ea nin g Su ita So ble lid fo s r Ra ng e Internals 5

Plant Components Falling film reboiler Feed reboiler The falling film evaporator as reboiler supports rapid start-up and shut-down of the column due to its limited liquid holding capacity. It is easily controlled and suited to operation with the smallest of temperature differences. Falling film reboilers are therefore used for temperature-sensitive products and are particularly suited to energy saving, multiple-effect distillation processes. Steam inlet Falling film reboiler Heating tubes Baffles Column Platform Trays Downcomer Reboiler-to-column duct Manhole Bottom product 6

Multiple-effect distillation permits the repeated use of the energy supplied to a system. Energy consumption is effectively reduced by a factor about equal to the number of effects. Since a temperature difference is required for heat transfer within the reboiler, there are practical limitations to the number of effects that can be used. Maximum and minimum temperatures are, as a rule, determined by the product, or the heating steam pressure and the cooling water temperature. The smaller the temperature difference per effect, the greater the number of effects that can be used. Falling film...

Plant Components Forced circulation reboiler Forced circulation reboilers are used for reboiler duties where viscous and/or heavily contaminated media are to be expected in the bottom product. High liquid velocities in the tubes and the resulting shearing forces ensure that this type of heat exchanger is operated within its optimum performance range, while keeping fouling to a minimum. Pump selection influences performance and efficiency. Forced circulation reboilers can be designed for either horizontal or vertical installation. Column Trays Downcomer Reboiler circulation line Manhole...

A single-effect ethanol distillation plant, shown during construction The arrangement shown above, is of a forced circulation re- process wastewater from a starch process. GEA Wiegand also boiler, mounted below the heads condenser and preheater. This provided the complete continuous fermentation plant. plant produces ethanol following the fermentation of the Specification of Distillation Plants units. GEA Wiegand thus offers fermentation lines, complemenThe key criteria to investment decision making includes the plant ting the core distillation process. The complete range of inno- purchase...

Technologies and Concepts Cleaning-in-place Fermentation Drying Distillation Molecular Adsorption Membrane Filtration Centrifugal Separation Evaporation Crystallization Tailor-made systems providing a wide range of upstream and experience within the GEA group provides our customers with downstream unit operations are available to complete the the best, most efficient and reliably engineered solution in each distillation system. Extensive know-how and long-standing case. 10

Unit Operations for Starch and Fermentation Products The example of an alcohol plant with wheat as its feedstock, includes gluten starch separation and animal feed dryer system and shows how the different production steps are linked and adapted to each other. Flour Mill Dry Gluten Starch Slurry Bioethanol Feed Grains (DDGS)

Applications in the Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Food Industries Solvents and precipitants are frequently recovered from process The recovery of solvents and precipitants for their recycling and wastewaters, separated as high-purity substances or re- within a process is most efficiently achieved where the energy cycled. This is often of benefit to the environment and results requirement is very low, or where the energy can effectively be in reductions to energy, utility, feedstock and waste disposal re-employed in other applications. costs. Within this range of applications, the number of...

Opposite page: Above left: Solvent rectification system for a pectin extraction plant Above right: A stripping and rectification column, indirectly heated, for the recovery of solvents from a pharmaceutical production process Feed: 3,000 l/hr Below: Flow sheet of an installation for the treatment of miscella Right: Multi-purpose production plant for the recovery of various active ingredients from plant extracts Capacity: 490 kg/hr based on the recovery of 92 % ethanol Below: Example of a capacity increase for a distillation column by the addition of a 2-effect pre-evaporator For example,...