Name

NAME : Saikiran Narawad

Roll No.
Roll : 19CH10041

EXPERIMENT : 2
VERIFICATION OF THE RAYLEIGH EQUATION FOR BATCH DISTILLATION

 Objective :

To verify the Rayleigh equation for batch distillation.

 Theory :

Batch distillation refers to the use of distillation in batches, meaning that a mixture
is distilled to separate it into its component fractions before the distillation is again
charged with more mixture and the process is repeated. The charge is slowly boiled
and the vapours are condensed and collected as distillate. Batch distillation has
always been an important part of the production of seasonal, or low capacity and
high-purity chemicals. It is a very frequent separation process in the
pharmaceutical industry.

For binary mixture, Rayleigh equation for batch distillation is-

Where, F = moles of feed of composition, xf

W = moles of residual liquid of composition, xw

x, y* = mole fraction of more volatile component in liquid and vapour, respectively.

The composition of the more volatile component in the distillate yDavg can be
determined from component material balance:
  Schematic:

Figure: (a) Experimental Schematics (b) Digital photograph of Experimental set up in MT

Lab
Experimental details:
(1) Calibration data:
Refractive Index of distillate, RFD = 1.379
Refractive index of residue, RFR = 1.45
Feed – 100 ml of Toluene and 100 ml of Acetone

Toluene concentration Refractive index

(%volume)
0 1.352
20 1.3692
40 1.394
60 1.4323
80 1.4537
100 1.481

 Calibration curve:

Calibration curve y = 0.0013x + 1.3468

1.5

1.48

1.46

1.44

1.42
RF

1.4

1.38

1.36

1.34
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
%volume of toluene

From the calibration curve:

For RFD = 1.379, %volume (VD) = 24.76 %.
For RFR = 1.45, %volume (VR) = 79.38 %
  Data for x and y* :
x y* 1/(y*-x)
0.1 0.456403 2.8058
0.15 0.566851 2.3989
0.2 0.64358 2.2544
0.25 0.7 2.2222
0.30 0.743453 2.255
0.35 0.778237 2.3352
0.40 0.807 2.457
0.45 0.831463 2.6215
0.50 0.852784 2.8346
0.55 0.871774 3.1078
0.60 0.889015 3.46

 Graph of x vs 1/(y*-x)

x vs 1/(y*-x)
y = 94.93x4 - 147.51x3 + 91.824x2 - 24.087x + 4.4227
4

3.5

2.5

2
1

*
y

x
/

-
(

1.5

0.5

0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
x

Xw = 0.255 Xf = 0.58
  Result
ln(F/W) = 0.874
∫ 1
∗ − = 0.842
There is a small amount of error between the two values.
Therefore, Rayleigh's equation is satisfied.
% Error = 3.66 %

 Discussion
• The Rayleigh Equation is useful for analyzing simple distillation because it shows
how concentration and quantity are related. Since the process is unsteady, it is
derived using a differential approach to changes in concentration over time.
• In this experiment, acetone is more volatile than water. This means that we will use
material balance on the component that is volatile or has a low boiling point.

• The integral value found in the experiment is the area under the curve found from
the plot of x vs 1/(y*-x).

• One possible source of error could be due to the readings from the experiment
being inaccurate. Another reason could be when calculating the area under the
curve from the polynomial equation.