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Design of Absorber PDF Free
Design of Absorber PDF Free
Absorber
EQUIPMENT DESIGN
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Chapter 5 Equipment Design
Absorber
DESIGN OF ABSORBER
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Chapter 5 Equipment Design
Absorber
DESIGN OF ABSORBER
Absorber
The removal of one or more selected components from a mixture of gas by absorption into
a suitable solvent.
Selection of Solvent
The most commonly used solvents for the removal of hydrogen sulfide & CO 2 from the gaseous
streams are amines, especially alkanolamines. A number of different compounds belonging to
this category can be used for this purpose. Some of the most commonly used amines are
compared in the following lines.
Mono-Ethanol Amine:
• Easy regeneration.
Di-Ethanol Amine:
• Used for the purification of natural gas even with contaminants COS & CS2.
• Gives excellent loading (0.7-1 mol of gas/mol of DEA) at high concentrated aqueous
solution from 25-50%.
• Easy recovery.
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• TEA is less reactive with acid gases.it has less acid gas carrying capacity.
Selection Criteria
Sufficient data and operating experience with several alkanolamines are on hand to
permit a judicious selection of the treating solution for a wide range of conditions.
• Have a high degree of solubility for the solute (minimizes absorbent required).
• Have low volatility (increases solute recovery and reduces absorbent loss)
Vapor liquid mass transfer operation may be carried either in plate or packed
column. These two types of operation are quite different. The relative merits of plate over packed
column are as follows:
1-Plate column are designed to handle wide range of liquid flow rates without flooding.
2-If a system contains solid contents; it will be handled in plate column, because solid will
accumulate in the voids, coating the packing materials and making it ineffective.
3-Dispersion difficulties are handled in plate column when flow rate of liquid are low as
compared to gases.
4-For large column heights, weight of the packed column is more than plate column.
5-If periodic cleaning is required, man holes will be provided for cleaning. In packed columns
packing must be removed before cleaning.
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7-Design information for plate column is more readily available and more reliable than that for
packed column.
8-Inter stage cooling can be provided to remove heat of reaction or solution in plate column.
There are three main types, sieve tray, bubble cap, valve tray. I’ve selected sieve tray because:
1-They are lighter in weight and less expensive. It is easier and cheaper to install.
Sieve Trays
Sieve trays are simply metal plates with holes in them. Vapor passes straight upward through the
liquid on the plate. The arrangement, number and size of the holes are design parameters.
Because of their efficiency, wide operating range, ease of maintenance and cost factors, sieve
and valve trays have replaced the once highly thought of bubble cap trays in many applications.
1. Foaming
2. entrainment
3. weeping/dumping
4. flooding
Foaming
Foaming refers to the expansion of liquid due to passage of vapor or gas. Although it
provides high interfacial liquid-vapor contact, excessive foaming often leads to liquid buildup on
trays. In some cases, foaming may be so bad that the foam mixes with liquid on the tray above.
Whether foaming will occur depends primarily on physical properties of the liquid mixtures, but
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is sometimes due to tray designs and condition. Whatever the cause, separation efficiency is
always reduced.
Entrainment
Entrainment refers to the liquid carried by vapor up to the tray above and is again caused
by high vapor flow rates. It is detrimental because tray efficiency is reduced: lower volatile
material is carried to a plate holding liquid of higher volatility. It could also contaminate high
purity distillate. Excessive entrainment can lead to flooding.
Weeping / Dumping
This phenomenon is caused by low vapor flow. The pressure exerted by the vapor is
insufficient to hold up the liquid on the tray. Therefore, liquid starts to leak through perforations.
Excessive weeping will lead to dumping. That is the liquid on all trays will crash (dump) through
to the base of the column (via a domino effect) and the column will have to be re-started.
Weeping is indicated by a sharp pressure drop in the column and reduced separation efficiency.
Flooding
Flooding is brought about by excessive vapor flow, causing liquid to be entrained in the
vapor up the column. The increased pressure from excessive vapor also backs up the liquid in the
down comer, causing an increase in liquid holdup on the plate above. Depending on the degree
of flooding, the maximum capacity of the column may be severely reduced. Flooding is detected
by sharp increases in column differential pressure and significant decrease in separation
efficiency.
Remember that the actual number of trays required for a particular separation duty is
determined by the efficiency of the plate. Thus, any factors that cause a decrease in tray
efficiency will also change the performance of the column. Tray efficiencies are affected by
fouling, wear and tear and corrosion, and the rates at which these occur depends on the properties
of the liquids being processed. Thus appropriate materials should be specified for tray
construction.
Column Diameter
Vapor flow velocity is dependent on column diameter. Weeping determines the minimum
vapor flow required while flooding determines the maximum vapor flow allowed, hence column
capacity. Thus, if the column diameter is not sized properly, the column will not perform well.
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[3]
N=5
Efficiency of column;
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[4]
Efficiency of column=75 %
Eo = 75%
[6]
Where,
= flooding vapor velocity, m/s, based on the net column cross-sectional area An
= a constant obtained from figure 11.27 vol. 6 Coulson & Richardson’s “Chemical Engineering”
Where
So,
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FLV = 0.376
So K1
K1 =0.05
Hence
Uf = 0.209 m/s
Vmax =0.135mm3/sec
= 0.758 m2
At = 0.862 m2
D = 1.05m
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Take,
Weir height = 50 mm
Hole diameter = 5 mm
Plate thickness = 5 mm
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So,
[7]
Where
= hole diameter, mm
a constant, dependent on the depth of clear liquid on the plate, obtained from figure 11.30 vol. 6 Coulson &
Richardson’s “Chemical Engineering”
Where
= weir length, m
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K2 = 30.9
So
Where
Where
= orifice coefficient
= vapor velocity
So
hd = 71.12 mm liq.
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Where
= residual head
hr = 11.87 mm liq.
Where,
ht = 169.15 mm liq.
In pressure units
1747 Pa (N/m2)
Where
Where
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= either down comer area Ad or the clearance area under the down comer Aap which is smaller
Where,
40 mm
So
23.73 mm
And
= 0.24 m
As
Where
= plate spacing
So
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Where
= residence time, s
So
tr = 5.3 sec
Uv =
Uv = 0.18 m/sec
So % flooding = 84.90%
Ψ = 0.004
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No. of plates = 7
Top Clearance = 1 m
Bottom Clearance = 1 m
Total Height = 5 m
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Specification Sheet
Design Data:
No. of trays 7
Efficiency 75%
Diameter 1.05 m
Height 5m
No. of holes 1680
Flooding 84.9%
No weeping
Fractional entrainment 0.004
Pressure 6300 kPa
Design Pressure 7560 kPa
Tray Thickness 0.005 m
Weir Height 0.05 m
Weir Length 0.78 m
Tray Spacing 0.457 m
Hole Diameter 0.005 m
Area of one Hole 0.00002 m2
Total Hole Area 0.033 m2
Down Comer Area 0.103 m2
Net Area 0.758 m2
Material of construction Stainless steel 316
Head type Ellipsoidal
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