Chemical Engineering Unit

Operations – Part 1

Jeff Mueller
April 2003
 Outline

• Mass Transfer/Equilibrium Stage

Operations
• Distillation
• Leaching and Extraction
• Gas Absorption
• Adsorption
• Drying of Solids
• Quiz
 Mass Transfer

• Transport of one material from a

region of higher concentration to
a region of lower concentration

• Examples: sugar dissolved in

coffee, dehumidifier, silica gel
absorption of impurities, vent
scrubber
Equilibrium Stage Operations

• Length of time to reach

equilibrium (limit of mass
transfer)
• Design equipment with many
stages, usually countercurrent
flow
 Distillation

• Separation by vaporization of a liquid

mixture of miscible and volatile
substances into individual
components

• Eg Toluene batch strip off SRM-1,

Xylene/Pyridine distillation during APB
production
Distillation Process Variables

• Temperature

• Pressure

• Reflux Ratio (L/V)

Short Path Distillation
Seal City Water Supply

Drive
Motor

Vapor Branch

Feed Line

Luwa Evaporator

Condenser
Hot Oil Return Chiller Return

Hot Oil Inlet

Chiller Supply

To Vacuum

Outlet Valve Outlet Valve

Distillate
Bottoms

Recirc Valve Recirc Valve

Gear Pump Gear Pump Gear Pump

Feed
Inlet

NATIONAL STARCH AND CHEMICAL COMPANY

LUWA WIPE FILM EV APORATOR

MARK REV ISION BY / DATE

DRAWING NUMBER

DRAWN BY KEZ DATE 5- 2 2 - 02

Short Path Distillation Process
Variables

• Pressure (Vacuum)

• Feed Rate

• Temperature
Leaching and Extraction

• In leaching (extraction of solids), soluble

material is dissolved from its mixture with an
inert solid by means of liquid solvent

• In extraction, a mixture of two components is

treated by a solvent that preferentially
dissolves one or more components in the
mixture

• Eg SRM-1 water wash to take out residual acid

 Gas Absorption

• A soluble vapor is absorbed by

means of a liquid in which the
solute gas is more or less soluble
from its mixture with an inert gas

• Eg Absorption of acid and caustic vapors by

water scrubber
 Adsorption

• A separation process in which

certain components of a fluid
phase are transferred to the
surface of a solid adsorbent

• Eg. Carbon, silica, gel, molecular sieves

 Adsorption Capacity

• Equilibrium capacity for water

– Silica gel = 0.42 lbs water/lb silica
gel
– Molecular sieve = 0.23 lbs water/lb
sieve
– Alumina = 0.19 lbs water/lb
alumina
 Adsorption Equilibrium Isotherms
Conductivity, uS/cm

Time, days
 Drying of Solids

• A liquid, usually water, is separated

by use of a hot, dry gas, usually air,
and is coupled with the
humidification of the gas phase or
the liquid is vaporized out of the
solid by use of heat transfer and
diffusion

• Eg Water removal from XNS-7 in comber dryer

 Drying of Solids

• Direct dryer (sweep gas) versus

indirect dryer (heat transfer
through metal)
• Surface water drying versus
critical point drying

• Eg why it takes so long to go from

95% dry to 99% dry
 The Quiz

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