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Separation Specifications
P, yA, yB
Product enriched in A
F, zA, zB
R, xA, xB
Recovery: How much of the desired component made it
to the stream it was supposed to be in:
P yA
P yA
Recovery of A
F z A P yA R xA
Separation Specifications
P, yA, yB
Product enriched in A
F, zA, zB
R, xA, xB
Purity: The concentration of desired component in the
stream it was supposed to be in:
Purity of A in product = yA
90
99
99.9
99.99
Product that is not recovered is lost profit and also increased waste
cost: separation recovery factors into plant yield
2012 G.P. Towler / UOP. For educational use in conjunction with
Towler & Sinnott Chemical Engineering Design only. Do not copy
Vapor-Vapor Separations
Membrane
Based on differences in relative
permeability of gases
Used for H2/CH4, CO2 removal,
air separation
Absorption
Using a liquid solvent
in an absorberstripper loop
Used for acid gases,
drying, water wash
Adsorption
Adsorb components selectively on a solid
Regenerate sorbent by temperature swing
(TSA) or pressure swing (PSA)
Used for air separation, H2/CH4, most
separations involving low concentrations
2012 G.P. Towler / UOP. For educational use in conjunction with
Towler & Sinnott Chemical Engineering Design only. Do not copy
Adsorption
One component from vapor phase preferentially adsorbs onto
the surface of a solid adsorbent
Two types of adsorption:
Reversible:
Usually physisorption
Adsorbed component can be released by decreasing pressure or increasing
temperature
Sorbent can be regenerated and used in multiple cycles, hence temperature-swing
adsorption (TSA) and pressure-swing adsorption (PSA)
Irreversible:
Usually chemisorption
Adsorbed component usually reacts irreversibly with solid
Low concentrations can be achieved, but solid is difficult to regenerate
Used for contaminant removal guard beds
Concentration of B on sorbent
Concentration
profile moves
down the bed
during adsorption
t1
t2
tB
At time tB
breakthrough of
the adsorbed
component
occurs and it
begins to appear
in the outlet gas
Chemical Engineering Design
Irreversible Adsorption
Feed
= open valve
= closed valve
Product
= open valve
= closed valve
Product
Source: UOP
2012 G.P. Towler / UOP. For educational use in conjunction with
Towler & Sinnott Chemical Engineering Design only. Do not copy
T1
p1
p2
m2
m1
T1
p1
Pressure Swing:
Decrease pressure to p2 and
loading decreases to m2
p2
m2
m1
Delta loading = m1 m2
(kg/kg sorbent)
T1
p1
Temperature Swing:
Increase Temperature to T2
and loading decreases to m2
p2
m2
m1
Delta loading = m1 m2
(kg/kg sorbent)
TSA
Longer cycle time for heating and
cooling of bed and vessel
Typically 5 60 mins
and purity
8, 10, 12, 16 bed plants
Adsorber Vessels
Valve Skid
Source: UOP
2012 G.P. Towler / UOP. For educational use in conjunction with
Towler & Sinnott Chemical Engineering Design only. Do not copy
PSA Cycle
Bed
A
1,2,3
PP
D
P
R
Time
absorb
equalize
provide purge
desorb
purge
repressure
ta
delta loading bed loading factor
5. Size each bed as a cylindrical pressure vessel
Bed loading factor = fraction of bed loaded at end of adsorption stage ~ 0.8 to 0.9
6. Add costs for valve skids, surge tank
(Detailed design need to consider mass transfer rates and dynamics
much more complex analysis)
Membrane Separation
Thin membranes of polymer or metal can be used to separate
gases:
Different species diffuse through a thin membrane at different rates:
Different gases have different solubility in metal or polymer
Asymmetric Membrane
Dense
layer
0.1 to 1.0 m
Porous
support
0.1 to 1.0
mm
(not to scale)
Permeate
Potting
Retentate
Membrane cross
section
UOP 5565M-22
Countercurrent
Cocurrent
Cross-flow
Permeate Recycle
Retentate
Feed
Permeate
Retentate Recycle
Feed
Retentate
Permeate
Vapor-Liquid Separations
Flash
Single stage thermal
& phase eqbm
Evaporation
Single stage removal of
volatile solute or solvent
Heat exchanger slides
Distillation
Multiple stage separation
between identified light key
& heavy key components
Fractionation
Separation of
multicomponent
mixture into fractions by
boiling ranges (e.g. in oil
refining)
2012 G.P. Towler / UOP. For educational use in conjunction with
Towler & Sinnott Chemical Engineering Design only. Do not copy
Absorption
Removal of vapor
component using
non-volatile solvent
Stripping
Multi-stage removal
of volatile solute
from solvent
Chemical Engineering Design
ut 0.07[(L v)/v]1/2
5 min of
liquid or Dv/2
5 min of
liquid
Liquid-Liquid Separations
Decanting
Single stage thermal
& phase eqbm
Extraction
Multi-stage
contacting of two
liquid phases
Mixer-Settler
Single theoretical stage
extraction process
Often 2 or 3 stages are still
cheaper than a column
Membrane
Based on differences in relative
permeability of components
Membrane can be used to keep
two solvents from mixing
Horizontal Decanter
Light
liquid
Vent
Heavy
liquid
Feed
Dispersion
band
Drain
Precipitation
(a.k.a. salting out)
Extraction
Evaporation
Membranes
(Reverse osmosis)
Crystallization
Ion Exchange
Adsorption
(Chromatography)
Oslo Crystallizer
Industrial Chromatography
Chromatography is a very versatile separation process,
particularly for
Mixtures of close-boiling compounds that are expensive to separate
by distillation or crystallization (e.g. xylenes, glucose-fructose)
Thermally sensitive compounds that cannot be distilled or crystallized
(many biological products, natural extracts, flavors, etc.)
Batch Chromatography
Eluent
Feed
Metering pump
(discontinuous
operation)
Conc. of
dissolved
material
in solvent
at A
Lights
Product
Time
Chromatography
column
Heavies
tcycle
Lights
Product
A
Heavies
A pulse or batch of feed is introduced into the column, then washed through using an eluent
The fraction that contains the desired product is retained and the rest discarded
Affinity chromatography
Highly specific interaction between solute and sorbent, e.g. antibody-antigen
Example: Protein A chromatography for recovery of monoclonal antibodies
Affinity chromatography is one of the most widely used methods in
recovering large biologically derived molecules
Continuous Countercurrent
Chromatography
Zone
Height
Fresh
desorbent
I
hE
Extract
Feed
Raffinate
II
III
hF
hR
IV
0
Net desorbent
Solids
recirculation
Concentration in liquid
If solids move then more strongly adsorbed component A can be separated from less strongly adsorbed B
Countercurrent Chromatography
Continuous movement of solids is difficult to accomplish
Good sorbents such as zeolites and gels do not flow well or suffer
attrition