Distillation: processes – separatory – And recovering heat by indirect heat exchange – Utilizing recovered heat for heating feed
Patent
1988-10-11
1990-04-10
Manoharan, Virginia
Distillation: processes, separatory
And recovering heat by indirect heat exchange
Utilizing recovered heat for heating feed
62119, 159 471, 159901, 159DIG33, 203 27, 203 49, 203 86, 203 98, 203DIG4, 203DIG8, 203DIG9, B01D 300
Patent
active
049157922
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention refers to a method of separating a volatile component from a mixture in which said volatile component is incorporated, said method comprising circulating a flow of a carrier gas from an evaporator to a condenser and back to said evaporator, said carrier gas being supplied to the evaporator to contact said mixture and subsequently being transferred to the condenser together with the volatile component of the mixture, a part of said volatile component being precipitated by condensation in said condenser.
2. Description of the Related Art
As examples of processes, where a volatile component of a mixture is a desired product, may be mentioned ethanol distilled out of an ethanol/water solution, and water distilled out of salt water. As other examples of processes, where a lowered fraction of the volatile component is desired, may be mentioned concentrations of solutions and drying of moist material. The invention is thus applicable to a wide span of distillation and drying processes.
The use of a carrier gas as a transport medium for vapor from an evaporator to a condenser has been demonstrated in the German patent application 2 459 935 in reference to distillation of water. Thus a spray of heated salt water is in an evaporator evaporatively cooled by a flow of a carrier gas, said gas being subsequently propelled in a condenser in heat exchange with the flow of salt water, preheating the same under precipitation of condensate. The amount of available heat of vaporization is in the process very limited, namely to the sensible heat in the spray drops and consequently the obtainable evaporation rate of the spray drops is small.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A remarkably improved process efficiency is according to the invention obtained by the introduction of a separate heating agent in the form of a circulated liquid flow, transferring to the mixture any desired amount of heat of vaporization and being a total enthalpy sink for condensate.
A separation process may thus be carried out with high energy efficiency at any desired pressure level or at any desired temperature range below the boiling point of the volatile component, which constitutes a prime object of the invention.
Especially, pressure level may be chosen equal to atmospheric pressure, which constitutes a second object.
Temperature range for a separation process may further be chosen to prevent deterioration in quality of heat sensitive mixtures or to permit use of a heat transfer surface made out of plastics, which is a third object of the invention.
These objects and others, listed below, are obtained by a method further characterized in that a flow of a liquid is circulated from heat transfer contact with said mixture, via heat transfer contact with an external heat sink in a cooler, via heat transfer contact with said carrier gas in said condenser, via heat transfer contact to an external heat source in a heater and back with said heat transfer contact with said mixture.
A further object is a simplified and highly efficient condensation surface by the use of the volatile component as the heat transporting liquid.
Another further object is to conduct a separation process over a wide temperature range with improved energy efficiency.
Another object is to provide a separation process, well adapted to be driven by a liquid/liquid heat pump for further improved energy efficiency .
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be described in more detail below in referance to the drawings. The basic principle of the method is illustrated in
FIG. 1 in a temperature and enthalpy diagram and in
FIG. 2 in an apparatus section. The method extended over a widened temperature range is illustrated in
FIG. 3 in a temperature/enthalpy diagram and in
FIG. 4 in an apparatus section.
FIGS. 5-13 illustrates the method, utilizing different modes of heat transfer in the evaporator to a mixture. Thus FIG. 5 shows in a plan section direct heat transfer through membranes to a fluent mixture
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Brown Laurence R.
Mangels Alfred J.
Manoharan Virginia
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