DISTILLATION

Hadebe AN, Ndlovu S and

Dladla NNM
Department of Chemical Engineering
Durban University of Technology

November 2022
SUMMARY
The objective of the distillation experiment was to separate the components of a
binary mixture of components using a distillation column that separates the
components of a mixture using their boiling points. A component of a binary
mixture with a lower boiling point will degas first, then a higher mass fraction
(methanol) will have more overhead than isopropanol, which has a higher boiling
point, thus isopropanol has a higher mass fraction and will be received at the
bottoms. The objective of this experiment was to operate an isopropanol methanol
mixture at a reflux ratio of 2. To complete mass and energy balances and check if
the energy balance.

The equipment used in the experiment was a refractometer, stopwatch, reboiler,

50 mm diameter sieve tray, condenser, hood heater, charge pump, glass beaker,
rotameter, and chart. This mixture was fed to a fractionation column under the
following conditions. The cooling water flow rate was set to 150 l/h, the reboiler
was set to 1450 kW, the feed pump was set to 32%, a reflux ratio of 2 was used, and
the refractive index of the feed was determined using a refractometer. The feed
refractive index was found to be 1.365, and the head refractive index was found to
be 1.34. The data was taken from the scoreboard and a stopwatch was used to find
the bottoms flow rate.

In view of the results attained it's seen that the element balance balances, anyway
the energy balance does not, this might be because of conditions, for illustration,
that the temperatures weren't recorded precisely, a portion of the heat got down in
light of the fact that the trial was done on an open system, with that being
observed we recommend that the trial should be done in a unrestricted system so
the temperatures will be precise and harmonious and likewise to minimize the
quantum of heat that gets down from the system, that way the energy will balance.

PAGE 1
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 4
THEORY ............................................................................................................................ 5
material balance .............................................................................................................. 5
energy balance ................................................................................................................ 6
EXPERIMENTAL METHOD AND APPARATUS .......................................................... 7
RESULTS DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION ............................................................ 10
Material balance ............................................................................................................ 10
Feed ........................................................................................................................... 10
Bottoms ..................................................................................................................... 10
Heads......................................................................................................................... 11
energy balance .............................................................................................................. 12
Total energy balance ................................................................................................. 12
RESULTS ..................................................................................................................... 14
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION .......................................................................... 16
NOMENCLATURE ......................................................................................................... 17
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................. 18
Appendices ........................................................................................................................ 20

Figure 1 ............................................................................................................................... 8
Figure 2 ............................................................................................................................. 10
Figure 3 ............................................................................................................................. 12
Figure 4 ............................................................................................................................. 14
Figure 5 ............................................................................................................................. 15
Figure 6 ............................................................................................................................. 15
Figure 7 ............................................................................................................................. 16

Appendix 1 ........................................................................................................................ 20
Appendix 2 ........................................................................................................................ 20
Appendix 3 ........................................................................................................................ 21

equation 1 ............................................................................................................................ 5
equation 2 ............................................................................................................................ 5
equation 3 ............................................................................................................................ 5
equation 4 ............................................................................................................................ 6
equation 5 ............................................................................................................................ 6
equation 6 ............................................................................................................................ 6
equation 7 ............................................................................................................................ 6
equation 8 ............................................................................................................................ 6

PAGE 2
equation 9 ............................................................................................................................ 6
equation 10 .......................................................................................................................... 7
equation 11 .......................................................................................................................... 7
equation 12 .......................................................................................................................... 7

PAGE 3
INTRODUCTION
Distillation is the most widely used method for separating liquid mixtures on a
commercial scale, making it an important part of many processes in the petroleum
and chemical industries. The mixtures are separated by heating a liquid until it
boils, then condensing and collecting the resultant hot vapors. Basically, we were
tasked with an isopropanol-methanol mixture. Our task is to operate the
distillation column on this alcohol at a reflux ratio of 2. We were then tasked to
complete mass and energy balances for the column. The material balance will help
us determine the distillate flow rate and composition. And the energy balance will
help us to check if it balances. If it doesn’t balance, we are to calculate the
difference and find percentage loss.

PAGE 4
THEORY
MATERIAL BALANCE
The feed flowrate is calculated using the following formula:
𝐹 = 0.042𝑥 2 − 7.6 × 10−04 𝑥 3 equation 1

Where F = Flowrate (L/Hr)

x = Pump setting (%)
A pump configuration which is a set of curves expressing a pump will performance
relating to pressure head and flow(Anon.2017) in appendix 1 was used to determine
the flowrate of the feed and the exact flowrate was calculated using equation 1
where a pump setting percentage is included.
Increasing the pump setting percentage results in an increase of the flowrate.
High feed rate may lead to increase in column bottom level or flooding in the
column. If the feed rate is too high, over-loading can occur.
The density of a stream containing A and B was calculated using the following
formula:
1 𝑥𝐴 𝑥𝐵 equation 2
= +
𝜌𝑚𝑖𝑥 𝜌𝐴 𝜌𝐵

𝑘𝑔
Where 𝜌𝑚𝑖𝑥 = 𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑎 𝑚𝑖𝑥𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 (𝑚3)
𝑥𝐴 = 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝐴
𝜌𝐴 = 𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝐴
Density of a mixture was calculated for each stream to find the mass flowrates of
streams. Increasing the mass fractions results in a decrease of the density of a
mixture. This increase would not affect energy balance.

Mass flowrate of a stream was calculated using the following equation:

𝑚 ̇ = 𝜌𝑉̇ equation 3

Volumetric flowrate was used to determine the mass flowrate. For feed stream
the volumetric flowrate was given and for the bottom stream it had to be
measured. It was measured by timing the withdrawal of a 50 ml sample from the
stopcock valves located in the cooled product lines. The vapor flow rate is also a
factor in the effectiveness of the tray. Increasing the flow rate increases the
effective mass transfer rate, whilst at the same time decreasing the contact time.

PAGE 5
The refractive index calibration curve in appendix D was used to find the mass
percentage of methanol in the bottom stream using the bottoms flowrate.
Refractive index of a solution depends on the concentration of solute.

Mass flowrate of overhead stream and its mass fractions was calculated using the
following formula:
F1 = F2 + F3 equation 4

Where F1 = Total flowrate of stream 1 (kg/s)

And the equation for finding mass fractions of each component was derived from
equation 4 since
𝐹1 = 𝑚𝑖,𝐹1 equation 5

Where 𝑚𝑖,𝐹1 = Mass flowrate of component i in stream F1 and

𝑚𝑖,𝐹1 = 𝐹1 𝑥𝑖,𝐹1 equation 6

Where 𝑥𝑖,𝐹1 = Mass fraction of component i in stream F1

The derived equation was:

𝐹1 𝑥𝑖,𝐹1 = 𝐹2 𝑋𝑖,𝐹2 + 𝐹3 𝑥𝑖,𝐹3 equation 7

ENERGY BALANCE
The total energy balance for this distillation process was calculated using the
following equation:

𝐻𝐹1 + 𝑄𝑟𝑒𝑏𝑜𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑟 = 𝐻𝐹2 + 𝐻𝐹3 + 𝑄𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑜𝑟 equation 8

Where 𝐻𝐹𝑖 = 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐 𝑒𝑛𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑝𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑖 (𝑘𝑔/𝑠)

𝑄𝑟𝑒𝑏𝑜𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑟 = 𝑟𝑒𝑏𝑜𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑢𝑡𝑦 (𝑘𝑔⁄𝑠)
𝑄𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑜𝑟 = 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑜𝑟 𝑑𝑢𝑡𝑦(𝑘𝑔⁄𝑠)

The equation used is derived from the total energy balance stating that all energy
coming in = all energy going out.

The specific enthalpy of a stream was calculated using the following equation:

̂𝐹𝑖 = 𝑚𝐹𝑖 𝐻𝐹𝑖

𝐻 equation 9

Where 𝐻𝐹𝑖 = 𝑒𝑛𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑝ℎ𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑖

PAGE 6
The difference between specific enthalpy and enthalpy is that specific enthalpy is
an intensive property, its value doesn’t depend upon the size or mass of the system
or matter but only in its type and its SI units are J/kg or KJ/kg and enthalpy is an
extensive property, its value depends upon the size of matter and its SI units are J
or KJ (Debarghya R 2020). Specific enthalpy is dependent on mass flowrate of
stream so an increase in mass flowrate will results in an increase in specific
enthalpy.

The enthalpy of stream was calculated using the following equation:

𝑇𝑖 equation 10
𝐻𝐹𝑖 = ∫ (𝐶𝑝,𝐹𝑖 ) 𝑑𝑇
𝑇𝑟𝑒𝑓

Where 𝐶𝑝,𝐹𝑖 = 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚 𝑖

The specific enthalpy of a stream was calculated using the following equation:

𝐶𝑝,𝐹1 = 𝑥𝑚,𝐹1 𝐶𝑝,𝑚 + 𝑥𝑖,𝐹1 𝐶𝑝,𝑖 equation 11

Where 𝐶𝑝,𝑖 = 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑒𝑛𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑝𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑎 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡

The condenser duty was calculated using the following equation:

𝑄𝑐 = 𝑚𝑐/𝑤 𝐶𝑃𝐶/𝑊 (𝑇𝐶/𝑊𝑜𝑢𝑡 − 𝑇𝐶/𝑊𝑖𝑛 ) equation 12

Where 𝑚𝑐/𝑤 = 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚

𝐶𝑃𝐶/𝑊 = 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑒𝑛𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑝𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚
𝑇𝐶/𝑤 = 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚

EXPERIMENTAL METHOD AND APPARATUS

PAGE 7
Figure 1
(DVI/3000 2019)

Procedure

✓ Turn on the Exhaust fan system to the left of the distillation column.
✓ Fill the feeding storage tank with 50L of the mixture to distill.

PAGE 8
✓ Adjust the feeding flow rate using the inlet globe valve to approximately 130
L/hr.
✓ Fill in the kettle with the mixture up to the overflow level.
✓ Set the reflux conditions turning the three-way switch to the TOTAL REFLUX
position and adjust power level to 2 KW.
✓ Feed the condenser with water circulation of 150 L/h.
✓ Feed with cold water to all the distillate and residue coolers.
✓ Start heating the kettle until you note some vapors near the column reflux
head.
✓ Wait until the temperature profile along the column is stable.
✓ Select the level of introduction of the mixture into the distillation column.
✓ Start the dosing pump, the feeding flow rate should have already been adjusted
( not exceeding 30% setting) before starting the distillation process.
✓ Adjust the preheating temperature to approximately 0.25 KW.
✓ Power up the preheater when its level is enough.
✓ Wait for all temperatures to stabilize.
✓ Write down all process values and set points.
✓ Set the reflux ratio to 2.
✓ Wait for all temperatures to stabilize.
✓ Write down all process values and set points.
✓ Take samples of the bottoms to determine mass fraction using a refractometer.
✓ Measure bottom flowrate by timing withdrawal of 50 ml sample from relevant
stock valves.

PAGE 9
RESULTS DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
CALCULATIONS

Figure 2

MATERIAL BALANCE

Appendix 1
𝑓𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 = 0.042(32)2 − 7.6 × 10−04 (32)3
= 18,10432 𝐿/𝐻𝑟

Feed
1 𝑥𝑚,𝐹1 𝑥𝑖,𝐹1
= +
𝜌𝑚𝑖𝑥 𝜌𝑚 𝜌𝑖
0.347731713 0.652268287
= +
792 786
∴ 𝜌𝑚𝑖𝑥 = 788.0760533 𝑘𝑔/𝑚3

𝑚 ̇ = 𝜌𝑉̇
788.0760533 𝑘𝑔 18.10432 𝐿 1𝑚3 1ℎ𝑟
| | |
𝑚3 ℎ𝑟 1000𝐿 3600𝑠
𝑚̇ = 0.00396322 𝑘𝑔/𝑠

Appendix 2
Mass % of methanol on Bottoms stream = 30%
∴ Mass % of isopropanol = 70%

Bottoms
Measured flowrate = 50,25921661 ml/ 11 s

PAGE 10
50,25921661 𝑚𝑙 1𝐿 3600 𝑠
| |
11𝑠 1000 𝑚𝑙 1 ℎ𝑟
∴ 𝑏𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑜𝑚𝑠 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 = 16,44847089 𝐿/ℎ𝑟

1 𝑥𝑚,𝐹3 𝑥𝑖,𝐹3
= +
𝜌𝑚𝑖𝑥 𝜌𝑚 𝜌𝑖
0.30 0.70
= 792 + 786
∴ 𝜌𝑚𝑖𝑥 = 787,7904328 𝑘𝑔/𝑚3
𝑚 ̇ = 𝜌𝑉̇
787,7904328 𝑘𝑔 16,44847089 𝐿 1𝑚3 1ℎ𝑟
3
| | |
𝑚 ℎ𝑟 1000𝐿 3600𝑠
𝑚̇ = 0,00359943 𝑘𝑔/𝑠

Heads
Total balance
F1 = F2 + F3
0.00396322 = 0,00359943 + 𝐹2
∴ 𝐹2 = 0,00036379 𝑘𝑔/𝑠
Methanol balance
𝐹1 𝑥𝑚,𝐹1 = 𝐹2 𝑋𝑚,𝐹2 + 𝐹3 𝑥𝑚,𝐹3
0.00396322 (0.347731713) = 0,00359943(0.30) + 0,00036379 𝑥𝑚,𝐹2
0,00137813728 − 0,001079829 = 0,00036379𝑥𝑚,𝐹2
∴ 𝑥𝑚,𝐹2 = 0.8199990643

Isopropanol balance
𝐹1 𝑥𝑖,𝐹1 = 𝐹2 𝑋𝑖,𝐹2 + 𝐹3 𝑥𝑖,𝐹3
0.00396322 (0.652268287) = 0,00359943(0.70) + 0,000363791𝑥𝑖,𝐹2
0,00258508272 − 0,002519601 = 0,000363791𝑥𝑖,𝐹2
∴ 𝑥𝑖,𝐹2 = 0. 1799981869

𝑚𝑚,𝐹2 = 𝐹2 𝑋𝑚,𝐹2
= 0,00036379(0.8199990643)
= 0,00029830745 𝑘𝑔/𝑠

𝑚𝑖,𝐹2 = 𝐹2 𝑋𝑖,𝐹2
= 0,00036379(0. 1799981869)
= 0,00006548213 𝑘𝑔/𝑠

PAGE 11
ENERGY BALANCE

Figure 3
Reflux = 2
𝐹6 = 2𝐹2
𝐹6 = 2(0,00036379 )
= 0.00072758 𝑘𝑔/𝑠

F4 = F6 + F2
= 0.00072758 + 0,00036379
= 0,00109137 𝑘𝑔/𝑠

𝐹5 = 𝐹4
= 0,00109137 𝑘𝑔/𝑠

Total energy balance

𝐻𝐹1 + 𝑄𝑟𝑒𝑏𝑜𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑟 = 𝐻𝐹2 + 𝐻𝐹3 + 𝑄𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑜𝑟

Tref = 0oC

𝐶𝑝,𝐹1 = 𝑥𝑚,𝐹1 𝐶𝑝,𝑚 + 𝑥𝑖,𝐹1 𝐶𝑝,𝑖

= 0.347731713(2510) + 0.652268287(1540)
= 1877,299762 KJ/kg0C

21℃
𝐻𝐹1 = ∫ (1877,299762) 𝑑𝑇
0℃
= 1877,299762(21)
= 39423,29499 𝐾𝐽/𝑘𝑔

PAGE 12
̂𝐹1 = 𝑚𝐹1 𝐻𝐹1
𝐻
= 0.00396322 (39423,29499)
= 156,243071𝐾𝐽/𝑠

𝐶𝑝,𝐹2 = 𝑥𝑚,𝐹2 𝐶𝑝,𝑚 + 𝑥𝑖,𝐹2 𝐶𝑝,𝑖

= 0.8199990643(2510) + 0. 1799981869(1540)
= 2335,394859 KJ/kg0C

64,5℃
𝐻𝐹2 = ∫ (1831) 𝑑𝑇
0℃
= 2335,394859(64,5)
= 150632,9684 𝐾𝐽/𝑘𝑔

̂𝐹2 = 𝑚𝐹2 𝐻𝐹2

𝐻
= 0,00036379(150632,9684)
= 54,79876758 𝐾𝐽/𝑠

𝐶𝑝,𝐹3 = 𝑥𝑚,𝐹3 𝐶𝑝,𝑚 + 𝑥𝑖,𝐹3 𝐶𝑝,𝑖

= 0.3(2510) + 0.7(1540)
= 1831 KJ/kg0C

73℃
𝐻𝐹3 = ∫ (1831) 𝑑𝑇
0℃
= 1831(73)
= 133663 𝐾𝐽/𝑘𝑔

̂𝐹3 = 𝑚𝐹3 𝐻𝐹3

𝐻
= 0,00359943 (133663)
= 481,1106121 𝐾𝐽/𝑠

𝑚 ̇ = 𝜌𝑉̇
1000 𝑘𝑔 150 𝐿 1𝑚3 1ℎ𝑟
3
| | |
𝑚 ℎ𝑟 1000𝐿 3600𝑠

= 0,04166666667 𝑘𝑔/𝑠

𝑄𝑐 = 𝑚𝑐/𝑤 𝐶𝑃𝐶/𝑊 (𝑇𝐶/𝑊𝑜𝑢𝑡 − 𝑇𝐶/𝑊𝑖𝑛 )

= 0,04166666667 (4180)(30,2 − 25)
= 905,6666667 𝐾𝐽/𝑘𝑔

PAGE 13
Reboiler Duty (Qr) = 1450 𝐾𝐽/𝑘𝑔

Energy in = 𝐻𝐹1 + 𝑄𝑟𝑒𝑏𝑜𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑟

= 156,243071 + 1450
= 1606,243071

Energy out = 𝐻𝐹2 + 𝐻𝐹3 + 𝑄𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑜𝑟

= 54,79876758 + 481,1106121 + 905,6666667

= 1441,576045

Difference = 1606,243071 − 1441,576045

= 159,667026

1441,576045
% Loss = × 100% − 100
1606,24307
= 10,25168787 %

RESULTS

Total flowrate of each stream

0,045
0,04
0,04167 0,04167
Total flowrate (kg/s)

0,035
0,03
0,025
0,02
0,015
0,01
0,005 0,003963220,000363790,00359943
0
F1 F2 F3 F4 F5
Total flowrate(kg/s) 0,00396322 0,00036379 0,00359943 0,04167 0,04167
Stream

Figure 4

It was observed that the mass fraction of the distillate is very low compared to that
of the bottom stream. This is because there was heat loss among the distillation
column increasing condensation and decreasing evaporation resulting in the vapor
volume being reduced. The flowrates of streams 4 and 5 are equal because the
same number of components going in also come out.

PAGE 14
 TOTAL MASS FRACTIONS OF EACH STREAM
F5
STREAM

F3

F1
0 0,2 0,4 0,6 0,8 1 1,2
F1 F2 F3 F4 F5
Water 0 0 0 1 1
Isopropanol 0,652 0,179 0,7 0 0
Methanol 0,347 0,819 0,3 0 0

MASS FRACTIONS

Water Isopropanol Methanol

Figure 5

The methanol in the bottom stream was found to be less than that in the distillate,
this is because most of the methanol evaporated to the top of the column and was
taken off as a final product in the distillate and the isopropanol remained in the
bottom. Streams 4 and 5 only consist of water which is used to cool down the
vapor using a condenser.

Stream temperature
80
TEMPERATURE (DEGREE CELSIUS)

70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
F1 F2 F3 F4 F5
Stream temperature 21 64,5 73 25 30,2
STREAM

Figure 6

The temperature of the bottom stream was found to be higher than that of the
distillate. This is because the distillate has been cooled down by a condenser and
the bottoms was boiled by the reboiler. Stream 4 has lower temperature than

PAGE 15
stream 5 because the cooling water gained heat from the hot vapor of methanol
that had to be cooled down.

enthalpy of each stream

1600
1400
1200
Enthalpy (kJ/S)

1000
800
600
400
200
0
F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 Qr Qc
enthalpy (kj/s) 156,24 54,79 481,11 905,67 0 1450 905,67
Stream

Figure 7

Enthalpy is dependent of flowrate that is why the trend of streams 1, 2 and 3 follow
that of the total mass flowrates. Temperature also plays a vital role in the
determination of enthalpy hence Qc with decreased temperature has a smaller
enthalpy than Qr with an increased temperature.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

The distillate stream contains approximately equal amounts of the mixture. This is
likely because mixture originally contained more isopropanol and the boiling
points of both substances were not too far apart, so more isopropanol evaporated,
and the temperature continued to rise. This can be separated by a reflux stream
that returns a portion of the mixture to the column after condensation for better
separation. The mass balances of the various components of the process were even,
clearly indicating that there were no losses during the process.

However, the energy balance was not balanced. Heat loss from distillation
columns is the primary factor affecting heat input and heat removed in reboilers or
condensers. Since most distillation columns operate above the ambient
temperature and the thermal conductivity of the insulation is finite, heat loss
along the column is inevitable. Heat loss along the distillation column increases

PAGE 16
condensation and decreases evaporation. Therefore, the vapor volume is reduced
at the top of the column, where the liquid flow is also lower than at the bottom.

Reflux ratio held constant at 2:1. The feed, distillate, bottoms and reboiler
temperatures were not constant as expected and were constantly changing every 15
minutes, causing an energy imbalance. Other errors, however, may result from
inaccuracies in observing conditions such as time, temperature, and instrument
settings.

Distillation columns should be well insulated to avoid heat loss. The insulation of
the vapor recompression column depends on the situation. If the column is hot
and additional reboiler volume is used, the column should be insulated (Sloley,
2001). Incomplete insulation in the pillars causes some heat dissipation.
.
These were the expected results, since adding heat to the bottom of the tower
creates a larger temperature gradient. The higher the tray temperature, the lower
the temperature fed to the mixture.

NOMENCLATURE

Name Symbol Unit

PAGE 17
 Volumetric flowrate 𝑉̇ L/hr
Time t s or hr
O
Temperature T C
Mass flowrate of streams mi -
Composition of component xi -
Heat duty Q KJ/s
Density 𝜌 Kg/m3
Pressure P Kw
Total flowrate of stream F Kg/s
Mass flowrate 𝑚̇ Kg/s
Mass m ml

REFERENCES
Das, S. (n.d.). Specific Enthalpy Vs Enthalpy: Comparative Analysis and FAQs.
[online] Lambda Geeks. Available at: https://lambdageeks.com/specific-enthalpy-

PAGE 18
vs-enthalpy/#:~:text=Enthalpy%20is%20an%20extensive%20property [Accessed 14
Nov. 2022].

Pignat.com. (n.d.). Batch continuous distillation. [online] Available at:

https://pignat.com/en/product/batch-continuous-distillation/ [Accessed 14 Nov.
2022].

Sloley, A. (2001). Energy Conservation Seminars for Industry: Texas Energy

Conservation. Distillation Column Operations Manual. 16.11.2005, Available from
http://www.distillationgroup.com

Understanding Centrifugal Pump Curves. (n.d.). [online] Available at:

https://www.mgnewell.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Understanding-Pump-
Curves.pdf.

PAGE 19
Appendices

Sera Diaphragm Pump

30
y = 207,55x - 83,443
25 R² = 0,1056
Flowrate (L/hr)

20

15

10

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Pump setting (%)

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

PAGE 20
 Pump setting % for feed diaphragm pump: % 32
Reflux ratio : 1:2
Refractive index of feed stream
Mass fraction of methanol % 0.347731713
Mass fraction of isopropanol 0,652268287
Refractive index of bottoms stream 1.365
Mass fraction of methanol % 0,3
Mass fraction of isopropanol 0,7
Density of methanol g/cm3 792
Density of isopropanol g/cm3 786
Overheads Temp °c 64,6
Bottoms Temp °C 73
Feed Temp °C 21
Cond Cooling Water Temp (in) °C 25
Cond Cooling Water Temp (out) °C 30,2
Reboiler Duty kW 1450
Feed Preheater Duty 156,2430713

Feed Flowrate L/hr 18,10432

Bottom Product Flow (measure) L/hr 16,44847089
Condenser cooling water flowrate L/hr 150

Appendix 3

PAGE 21
Organization Name
MEETING MINUTES
Date of meeting

Present: : Hadebe AN (21942044)

Dladla NNM
Next meeting: :11 November 2022, 10;00, Alan Pittendrigh library.

1. Announcements
There are members not in attendance and are not reachable on phones. Which are
Ndlovu S and Ndlela M.

2. Discussion
Each member of the group introduced themselves to break the ice. It is very
important for team members to know each other for team building and it would be
easy for team members to work together in the future.
The assignment was read by Miss Hadebe AN for a better understanding of what is
to be done. Miss Dladla NNM read the rubric to clarify us on how to go about
doing the assignment. Each member chose what part of the assignment they have a
better understanding of and would like to complete as part of the assignment.

3. Roundtable
Everyone agreed with their work as follows:
Hadebe AN
• Minutes of meeting
• Theory
• Binding of final document
Dladla NNM
• Results
• Discussion and Conclusion

Finally, the team came up with a suggestion that if the other team members do not
show up in
the next meeting the work left would be divided amongst the available members.
We also

PAGE 22
 agreed that on the next meeting we should at least be halfway done with our
portion of
assignment and if a person came across any difficulties, we would discuss it on our
next
meeting, or they should be free to contact the other on WhatsApp.

4. Unfinished business
We did not get ahold of the other group members, so a portion of activities was left
out with the hope of finding them soon.

5. New business
Miss Hadebe AN is to do the theory part of the assignment and Miss Dladla NNM
would do the
calculations.

11 November 2022 , Alan Pittendrigh (Room 7), 10;00

Present: : Hadebe
AN
Dladla
NNM
Next meeting: Same
venue and time.

6. Announcements
There are members not in attendance and are not reachable on phones. Which are
Ndlovu S and Ndlela M.

7. Discussion
Group members had to show what they have done and where they are not
understanding. Miss Dladla mentioned that she had been busy with a design
assignment, so she had not completed most of the things. She showed where she
started with the calculations, and they had to be redone as they did not correspond
with the answers on excel and she had used variables that are unknowns/not yet
calculated.

PAGE 23
 Miss Hadebe showed her how to go about completing the calculations and
mentioned that she needed to know every outcome of the calculations before
writing summary and theory. Both the team members decided to complete the
calculations together on this day and Miss Hadebe will go and type them later.

8. Roundtable
The team decided to complete the assignment with the following tasks:
Hadebe AN
• Minutes of meeting
• Theory
• Introduction and summary

Dladla NNM
• Discussion and Conclusion
• Nomenclature and Appendix

Finally, the team came up with a suggestion to also do the other part of the
assignment since the other team members did not show up in this meeting. We also
agreed that on the next meeting we should be done with our portion of assignment.

9. Unfinished business
We did not get ahold of the other group members, so we had to complete the assignment
on our
own.

10. New business

Miss Hadebe AN is to complete the Introduction and summary and Miss Dladla NNM
would do the Nomenclature and appendix.

15 November 2022, Alan Pittendrigh(ROOM 12), 10;00

Present: :Hadebe AN
Ndlovu S
Next meeting: :This was a final meeting.

11. Announcements
Ndlovu S had reached out to the group on Saturday and was told to complete the
discussion and conclusion as miss Dladla had been very busy during the weekend.

12. Discussion
As miss Dladla was busy Miss AN Hadebe did the nomenclature and appendix.
Ndlovu S came with the Discussion and conclusion and a few adjustments had to

PAGE 24
be made. After everything was completed, the assignment was bonded together.
The only thing remaining was the Visio drawings and we all went up to the
computer rooms at S2 level 1 to complete them. We agreed that once the
assignment was completed, we would share it amongst the group and no lies are to
be told in the meeting minutes.

PAGE 25