Design Guidelines for
Distillation Revamps
Karl Kolmetz
KLM Technology Group
Stephen J Wallace
Wallace Consulting
Mee Shee Tiong
KLM Technology Group
Prepared for,
Best Practices Conference
Plan to attend the 3rd Conference on
Best Practices in Process Plant Management
21 - 22 of June 2006
Introduction
In most chemical processing systems two main unit operations dominate; chemical reaction followed by separation. From the reactor the reactants are then sent to a separation unit. In the separation unit, the reactants are separated into desired products, unreacted products for recycle, and unwanted or by products.
Distillation is the most common separation technique and is energy intensive. Distillation can consume more than 50% of a process plant’s operating energy cost. A way to improve an existing plant’s operating cost is to improve the efficiency and operations of the distillation unit by correct equipment selection, process optimization and control.
A review of successful and not so successful revamps can help develop guide lines for the implementation of future successful distillation revamps. Case studies of successful revamps will be reviewed and guide lines developed from these case studies.