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Title: 110th Anniversary: Thermal Coupling via Heat Transfer: A Potential Route to Simple Distillation Configurations with Lower Heat Duty

Journal Article · · Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research

Numerous configurations are available for the separation of a multicomponent mixture by distillation; each of which has different energy requirements. Here, we classify heat integration (a valuable method of reducing energy requirements) within distillation into two categories: conventional thermal coupling with mass exchange between columns (TCM) and thermal coupling via heat transfer without mass exchange (TCH). The sharp split distillation configurations, with the lowest number of distillation sections and transfer streams, provide simple distillation configurations but are known to have heat duties that are much higher than the fully thermally coupled (FTC) or Petlyuk configuration. However, for a mixture with four or more components, FTC, having the maximum number of column sections, is a complex configuration to build and operate. Through specific examples of four and five component distillations, we present, for the first time, sharp split configurations, using only one TCH and no TCM, which have a lower heat duty than the corresponding FTC containing only TCM, without requiring substantial pressure changes in the system.

Research Organization:
Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)
Grant/Contract Number:
EE0005768
OSTI ID:
1976098
Journal Information:
Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, Vol. 58, Issue 47; ISSN 0888-5885
Publisher:
American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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