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How Trays Work: Flooding: Downcomer Backup
How Trays Work: Flooding: Downcomer Backup
CHAPTER 3
How Trays Work:
Flooding
Downcomer Backup
D
istillation towers are the heart of a process plant, and the
working component of a distillation column is the tray. A tray
consists of the following components, as shown in Fig. 3.1:
There are two types of tray decks: perforated trays and bubble-
cap trays. In this chapter, we describe only perforated trays, examples
of which are
Possibly 90 percent of the trays seen in the plant are of these types.
Perforated tray decks all have one feature in common; they depend
on the flow of vapor through the tray deck perforations, to prevent
liquid from leaking through the tray deck. As we will see later, if
liquid bypasses the outlet weir, and leaks through the tray deck
onto the tray below, tray separation efficiency will suffer.
23
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Weir
Downcomer
Tray
deck
400°F
Vapor 350°F
Liquid
400°F
Liquid
450°F
Vapor
Chapter 3: H o w Tr a y s W o r k : F l o o d i n g 25
400°F
Vapor 350°F
Liquid
350°F
Liquid
400°F
Vapor
How about the 10 trays shown in Fig. 3.4? Calculate their average
efficiency (answer is 10 percent). As the vapor temperature rising
from the top tray equals the liquid temperature draining from the
bottom tray, the 10 trays are behaving as a single perfect tray with
100 percent efficiency. But as there are 10 trays, each tray, on average,
acts like one-tenth of a perfect tray.
Poor tray efficiency is caused by one of two factors:
• Flooding
• Dumping
FIGURE 3.4
Average tray
efficiency 10
400°F
percent.
Vapor
(1)
(2)
(9)
(10)
400°F
Liquid
Chapter 3: H o w Tr a y s W o r k : F l o o d i n g 27
FIGURE 3.5
Flooding due to
lack of a
downcomer seal.
Vapor
Tray #2
Tray #1
• When flooding starts on a tray, all the trays above that point
will also flood, but trays below that point will go dry.
• An early indication of flooding in a distillation column is loss
of liquid level in the bottom of the column.
• If the downcomer clearance—which means the distance
between the bottom edge of the downcomer and the tray
below—is too great, the downcomer becomes unsealed. Vapor
flows up the downcomer, and the trays above flood.
• If the downcomer clearance is too small, then liquid backs up
in the downcomer, and the trays above flood. To calculate the
height of liquid in the downcomer, due to liquid flowing
through the downcomer clearance:
H 0.6 V 2
• Weir height
• Crest height
Chapter 3: H o w Tr a y s W o r k : F l o o d i n g 29
The sum of the crest height plus the weir height equals the
depth of liquid on the tray deck. One might now ask, “Is not the
liquid level on the inlet side of the tray higher than the liquid level
near the outlet weir?” While the answer is “Yes, water does flow
downhill,” we design the tray to make this factor small enough to
neglect.
Tray #2
10 psig
Chapter 3: H o w Tr a y s W o r k : F l o o d i n g 31
FIGURE 3.8
Entrainment
causes jet flood.
Tray #2
Spray
Foam
Foam
Spray
Chapter 3: H o w Tr a y s W o r k : F l o o d i n g 33
-X
Reflux
1
Propane
product
Propane 15
Butane
feed
16
30
Steam
Butane
product
Percent heavy
key component A
in overhead
Incipient flood
Reflux
(Δ P)(28)
=K
(NT)(TS)(s.g.)
Chapter 3: H o w Tr a y s W o r k : F l o o d i n g 35