Distillation is favored over other separation techniques :

1. The relative volatility is greater than 1.2

2. Products are thermally stable,
3. Large rates are desired,
4. No corrosion, precipitation or explosion issues are present
The column may have multiple feed points and products.
- The column may have a solvent added to the system to help
increase the separation; this type of column is named an extractive distillation
column.
- The column may have a catalyst bed and reaction occurring in the column; this
type of column is named a reactive distillation column
Fractionation Column (continuous Distillation)
Reboiler / Condenser
Trays
A. Dual Flow Tray /Ripple Tray
B. Bubble Cap Tray
C. Sieve Deck Tray
D. Valve Tray
E. Down comer Advances
Packing
A. Random
B. Structured
Tower Problem Solving
1. Foaming
2. Entrainment
3. Weeping / Dumping
4. Flooding
Tray requirements
The most important properties that a tray must have are:
- High efficiency
- Large capacity
- Substantial flexibility
- Low pressure drop
- Low capital and maintenance costs
 Tray efficiency :tray efficiency depends, among other things, on the type of tray
the valve tray has a maximum efficiency of 80%, whereas the maximum efficiency
of the grid tray is 56%;
Tray capacity
Tray capacity means the maximum vapor and liquid load that a tray can handle
without deviation in the flow conditions.
The tray type with the highest flexibility is the valve tray. The tray type with the
lowest flexibility is the grid tray
The tray type with the smallest capacity is the bubble cap tray. This is because the
individual bubble caps take up a relatively large area.
The tray type with the highest pressure drop is the bubble cap tray. The tray type
with the lowest pressure drop is the grid tray.
The tray type with the highest maintenance costs is the valve tray. This is because
the valve design is relatively susceptible to fouling
Choice of Solvent for Extractive Distillation Process:
a) An effective solvent can have a great effect on the economics of an extractive
distillation process. What are the features that are essential when selecting a
solvent for extractive distillation? Selection of a suitable solvent is fundamental to
ensure an effective and economical design. An effective solvent can have a great
effect on the economics of an extractive distillation process.
b) Several features are essential when selecting a solvent:
1. The solvent must be chosen to affect the liquid-phase behavior of the key
components differently; otherwise no enhancement in reparability will occur
2-The solvent must be higher boiling than the key components of the separation
and must be relatively nonvolatile in the extractive column, in order to remain
largely in the liquid phase.
3. The solvent should not form additional azeotropes with the components in the
mixture to be separated.
4. The extractive column must be a double-feed column, with the solvent feed
above the primary feed; the column must have an extractive section
Extractive distillation is used more often than a zeotropic distillation because of
low energy consumption and flexible selection of the possible solvents.
Trays Performance :
Vapour and liquid loads - Fluids properties -Tray spacing - no entrainment
Need of good contact between the phases
The effect of loading vapor and liquid on the tray performance The valve tray has a
maximum efficiency of 80%, whereas the maximum efficiency of the grid tray is
56% The figure contains the flooding and coning & entrainment ..etc it also
explain the tray performance under the loading

- The resistance to the vapour flow caused by the tray itself;

- The liquid height on the tray. This depends primarily on the liquid load;
- The velocity of the vapour. This is determined by the vapour load
The key to an efficient and economical membrane separation process is the
membrane. It must have good permeability, high selectivity, solute compatibility,
high capacity, stability, freedom from fouling, and a long life
DIALYSIS
In the dialysis membrane-separation process, the feed is liquid at pressure P1 and
contains solvent, solutes of type A, and solutes of type B and insoluble, A sweep
liquid or wash of the same solvent is fed at pressure P2 to the other side of the
membrane. The membrane is thin, with micro pores of a size such that solutes of
type A can pass through by a concentration-driving force. Solutes of type B are
larger in molecular size than those of type A and pass through the
membrane only with difficulty or not at all. This transport of solutes through the
membrane is called dialysis. The products of a dialysis unit (dialyzer) are a liquid
diffusate (permeate) containing solvent, and a dialysate (retentate) of solvent.

Reverse osmosis : is used to desalinate and purify seawater, brackish water, and
wastewater.
Choice of Solvent for Gas Absorption :
1. Gas Solubility
2. Solvent Volatility
3. Corrosion Resistance
4. Cost of Solvent ,solvent recovery systems.
5. Solvent Viscosity :Diffusion Coefficient ,Mass Transfer Coefficient , Rate of
Mass Transfer, heat transfer characteristic , pumping costs
6. Toxicity
7. Flammability, Flame-proofing equipment.
8. Chemical Stability.
9. Freezing Point
HTU :A part outside the integral sing having the unit of length ( m ) it is called
Height of Transfer Unit (HTU) and given the symbol H .
NTU : A part under the integral sign that can be considered as the total change in
concentration divided by the driving force of mass transfer. It is an indication
of the degree of difficulty of separation. The result of this part after integration
called Number of Transfer Units (NTU) and given the symbol N .
Membrane Separations Processes: Partial separation of components of a mixture
by means of a semipermeable barrier (membrane) through which one or more
species move faster than another or other species
Retentate (residue): part of the feed that does NOT pass through the membrane.
Permeate: part of the feed that does pass through the membrane.
The optional sweep is a liquid or gas used to facilitate the removal of permeate.
The membrane porosity (  ) is the fraction of the total membrane volume that is
porous.
The membrane tortuosity ( ) reflects the length of the average pore compared to
the membrane thickness. The most important property characterizing microporous
membrane is the pore diameter (d)
Permeance is analogous to the mass transfer coefficient.
Permeability is a physical property of porous materials, which determines the
flow of fluid through the material by an applied pressure gradient.
Desirable characteristics (attributes) for a membrane:
1. Good permeability
2. High selectivity
3. Chemical and mechanical compatibility with processing environment
4. Stability, freedom from fouling and reasonable useful life
5. Amenability to fabrication and packaging
6. Ability to withstand large pressure differences across the membrane thickness
a) Discuss the two film theory of mass transfer and state the assumptions on which
it is based.
b) Answer
Solute A diffusing through two phases

Concentration profile of solute A diffusing through two phases

- Two thin film at each side of the interface
- Basis of the two-film mass transfer concept

- Equilibrium at the interface

- Bulk phases concentrations constant

- Concentration gradient in the two films
- All resistance to mass transfer lay in the films regions

Film (individual) Mass Transfer Coefficients and Driving Forces

Film Coefficients –individual coefficients are defined from the equations:

Concentration driving forces and interface concentrations in interphase mass

transfer (equimolar counter diffusion)
Overall Mass Transfer Coefficients and Driving Forces
Overall mass transfer coefficients defined as:

,
Overall gas phase driving force: ( y AG  y * )
Overall liquid phase driving force: (x AL  x * )

b) What do we mean by an azeotropic mixture? Illustrate graphically the possible

types of azeotropes

c) Answer: Azeotropic Mixtures : ij  1

The relative volatility is equal to one, a constant boiling mixture x=y, no
separation of phases
1) Minimum boiling azeotrope: The boiling point of the mixture passes through
a minimum. Examples: methanol/acetone and water/dioxin

2) Maximum boiling azeotrope : The boiling point of the mixture passes

through a maximum. Examples: water/nitric acid and chloroform/acetone.

c) Define the permeability of a porous material. What is the difference between

permeability and permeance? How are they analogous to diffusivity and
mass-transfer coefficient?

Permeability: is a physical property of porous materials, which determines the

flow of fluid through the material by an applied pressure gradient. Permeability is a
measurement of the ease with which a liquid or gas is able to travel through a porous
solid material.

A polymer membrane to be effective for separating a mixture of chemical

components must have a high permeance defined as:
Pmi
Pmi 
lm
Pmi : Permeability of species (i )
lm : Membrane thickness

Permeance is analogous to the mass transfer coefficient,

The molar trasmembrance flux of species (i ) can thus be written as:
 Pm 
Ni   i  (drivivg force)  Pmi  drivivg force 
l 
 m 
The molar mass transfer flux of species (i ) can be written as,
D 
N ij   ij 
 (drivivg force )  Kg drivivg force 
  
 
This shows the analogy between diffusivity D ij and permeability Pm i
and the analogy of permeance Pm i and mass transfer coefficient Kg .

Membrane Process Diagram: