Types of Distillation

Batch distillation:
• Simple
• Flash
• Steam
Continuous
• Fractionator
Other
• Azeotropic
• Extractive
Simple distillation or Differential
• Let F kmol of liquid mixture(A+B) containing xFmol
fraction of A.
• D,W-kmol of distillate and residual liquid
• xD,xw-mol fraction of A in distillate and residue
• L-kmol of liq left in the still at any time and x be the
mol fraction of A in the liquid
• dD kmol of the distillate of the composition y in
equilibrium with the liquid is vaporised then the
composition of the quantty of liquid decreased from x
to x-dx and L to L-dL
Total material balance= 1
Component A balance = 2
3
Rearranging eqn 3

If distillation
F XF
starts with Fmoles of feed of concentration xF and
dl till the dx
continues amount of liquid reduces to W moles(composition
xw)Wthe X ( y *can

L equation
W
 xbe
) integrated
XF
F dx
In
W
 
XW
( y *  x)
• Use to determine F,W,xF and xw
• Integration of the RHS is evaluated graphically by
plotting 1/y-x as an ordinate and x as abscissa and
determining the area under the curve x=xf and x=xw
Constant relative volatility
x
y
1  (  1) x
 
F 
xF
dx 
In    
W xW  x
 x
 1  (  1) x  
onsimplifi cation
1  dx dx 
  
(  1)  x
  
(1  x ) 
 In (1  x)


FxF  F (1  xF 
 
Wxw W (1  xW 
• Problem no 2:Differential distillation
• Benzene and toluene α=2.4
Flash or eqm distillation
In this process, a pressurised feed
stream which is in liquid phase, is
passed through a throttling
valve/nozzle or an expansion
valve/ nozzle (sometimes, the
feed stream may be passed
through a heater before being
passed
through the valve/nozzle, in
order to pre-heat the feed)
connected to a tank or drum,
which is called a flash”tank or
drum
• The pdt D rich in more volatile ,is in this case
entirely vapour. The Material and enthlpy
balance
F  D W
FZ F  DyD  WxW

FH F  Q  DH D  WH W
solved simul tan eously
W yD  zF H D  (H F  Q / F )
  
D xW  z F H W  ( H F  Q / F )
• Consider 1 mole of liquid mixture having xf
mol fraction of more volatile component
• f-fraction of feed vaporised of composition y
• (1-f)-moles of residual liquid obtained
• X-mol fraction of more volatile in the liquid
xF  f . y  (1  f ) x
f=1,slope=0,feed totally
fy  (1  f ) x  xF vaporised
(1  f ) x f=0 ,no feed vaporised
y x F
f f
 Pb.N0 3
• A liquid mixture containing 50 mol% n-
heptane and 50 mol% n-octane at 30 °C is to
be continuously flash vaporised at 1std atm
pressure to vaporize 60 mol% of the
feed.What will be the composition of the
vapor and liquid for an equilibrium stage?
x 1 0.665 0.487 0.312 0.151 0
y 1 0.810 0.674 0.492 0.279 0
• An equimolar mixture of benzene and toluene is subjected to
flash distillation at a pressure of 1bar in the separator.
Determine the compositions of the liquid and vapor leaving
the separator when the feed is 25% vaporised. Estimate the
temperature in the separator
• What are the con in the vap and liq ,temp if the feed is
• 1. 0% vaporised 2. 50% 3. 75% 4. 100%

TempC 80.1 85 90 95 100 106 110

.6
x 1 0.78 0.581 0.411 0.258 0.130 0
0
y 1 0.90 0.777 0.632 0.456 0.261 0
0
A mixture containing 70 mol% benzene and 30 mole% toluene is to be
vaporized at 760mmHg until 1/3 moles of original liquid mixture are in vapor
phase. Calculate the compositions of the distillate and the residue when the
separation takes place under
(i)Equilibrium distillation and (ii) Differential distillation
The average relative volatility of benzene with respect to toluene is 2.5
Azeotropic distillation

Acetic acid(nbp=118.1˚C-water(nbp=100
˚C)
Butyl acetate is entrainer
Heteroazeotrope(bp=90.2 ˚C)
Extractive distillation

bp toluene=110.8
bp isooctane=99.3 c
bpPhenol=181.4c
 Requirements of a solvent
• High selectivity
• High capacity
• Low volatility
• Separability
• cost, toxicity, corrosive character, chemical
stability,
 Steam distillation
• Is a special type of distillation (a separation process) for temperature sensitive
materials like natural aromatic compounds.
• It once was a popular laboratory method for purification of organic
compounds, but has become obsolete by vacuum distillation.
• Many organic compounds tend to decompose at high sustained temperatures.
Separation by distillation at the normal (1 atm) boiling points is not an option,
so water or steam is introduced into the distillation apparatus.
• The water vapor carries small amounts of the vaporized compounds to the
condensation flask, where the condensed liquids phase separate, allowing for
easy collection. This process effectively allows for distillation at lower
temperatures, reducing the deterioration of the desired products.
• If the substances to be distilled are very sensitive to heat, steam distillation
may be applied under reduced pressure, thereby reducing the operating
temperature further.
 Applications
• Steam distillation is employed in the isolation of
essential oils, for use in perfumes,. Eucalyptus oil
and orange oil are obtained by this method on the
industrial scale. Steam distillation is also sometimes
used to separate intermediate or final products
during the synthesis of complex organic compounds.
• Steam distillation is also widely used in petroleum
refineries and petrochemical plants where it is
commonly referred to as "steam stripping".
• Separation of high boiling material from a
solution: decolourization/deodourization of
vegetable oils, recovery and purification of
essential oils
• Separation and purification of hazardous and
inflammable substances like turpentine
• Separation of thermally unstable substance
from a mixture
 Steam distillation
• If the component A and B are not miscible,
their mixture exerts a total vapor pressure
which is equal to the sum of the vap pressure
of the individual liquids at the given
temperature. So the bubble temp of such
mixture is lower than the B.P of either A or B
• This property of an immiscible liquid mixture
forms the basis of steam distillation
• Possible under the following conditions
• 1. When the material to be distilled does not
react with steam
• 2.When the desired product-the volatile or
non volatile residue is insoluble in water
1. A liquid mixture containing 50 mol% each of benzene and toluene at 40°C is
to be continuously flash vaporised to vaporise 60 mol % of the feed. The
residual liquid product contains 35 mol % benzene. If the enthalpies per mol
of the feed, the liquid product and the vapor product are respectively 2,5 and
30 kJ/mole, calculate the heat added in KJ per mole of vapor product (10
marks)