Evaporator and process for use thereof

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10058796-B2
Application number	US-201314650359-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 9, 2013
Priority date	Dec 10, 2012
Publication date	Aug 28, 2018
Grant date	Aug 28, 2018

Abstract

An evaporator (1) adapted for a counter-current flow of at least one liquid and one vapor therein is disclosed. The evaporator (1) comprises an evaporator sub-unit (70), an internal sub-unit (90) having a surface (92), a heat exchanger sub-unit (100), and a condenser sub-unit (110), all in communication with one another and contained within one common vessel (12), wherein the internal sub-unit (90) is located above the evaporator sub-unit (70), the heat exchanger sub-unit (100) is located above the evaporator sub-unit (70), and the condenser sub-unit (110) is located above the heat exchanger sub-unit (100) and the internal sub-unit (90). The present invention further relates to a process to separate components using the evaporator (1) and also to the use of the evaporator (1) or the process in the purification and/or concentration of a thermally-sensitive compound and/or in the removal of a solvent.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An evaporator adapted for a counter-current flow of at least one liquid and one vapor therein, comprising:
a first inlet for a first liquid feed stream,
a first outlet for a first liquid output stream,
a second outlet for a first vapor stream,
an evaporator sub-unit comprising an evaporating means for evaporation of a liquid to produce a vapor,
an internal sub-unit having a surface embodied such that a contact is provided between a vapor and a liquid and a mass transfer is provided between the vapor and the liquid,
a heat exchanger sub-unit comprising a heat exchanging means embodied such that a heat exchange is provided between a liquid stream and a liquid or vapor contained within the evaporator,
and a condenser sub-unit comprising a condensing means for condensing the vapor to a condensate,
wherein the first inlet, the first outlet, the second outlet, the evaporator sub-unit, the internal sub-unit, the heat exchanger sub-unit, and the condenser sub-unit are all in fluid and/or vapor communication with one another and are contained within one common vessel,
wherein the internal sub-unit is located above the evaporator sub-unit, the heat exchanger sub-unit is located above the evaporator sub-unit, and the condenser sub-unit is located above the heat exchanger sub-unit and the internal sub-unit,
wherein the first inlet is located in a lower portion of the vessel, the first outlet is located below the evaporator sub-unit, and the second outlet is located above the evaporator sub-unit and the first inlet,
and wherein the evaporator additionally comprises a first collector located in an upper portion of the vessel and below the heat exchanger sub-unit, and above the evaporator sub-unit, and embodied such that a condensate is collected and the collected condensate is partially or fully withdrawn from or refluxed within the common vessel.

2. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the liquid stream is one of the feed stream, a cooling stream and a heating stream.

3. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the heat exchanger sub-unit is located above the internal sub-unit.

4. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the first inlet is located above the evaporator sub-unit.

5. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the first collector has a jacket for providing thermal isolation.

6. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the evaporator sub-unit is a falling film evaporator sub-unit comprising one or more heated surfaces.

7. The evaporator of claim 6 , wherein the one or more heated surfaces are vertical.

8. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the heat exchanger sub-unit is a feed preheater sub-unit for preheating the feed stream and the internal sub-unit is a mist eliminator sub-unit for eliminating a mist.

9. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the evaporator additionally comprises a boot, wherein the boot is contained within the common vessel and is located in the lower portion and below the evaporator sub-unit.

10. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein a means other than piping is used for leading the liquid and/or the vapor between any of the sub-units.

11. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein moving parts are absent within the common vessel.

12. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the evaporator additionally comprises one or more static sections, wherein the one or more static sections are located above the evaporator sub-unit and below the condenser sub-unit, and wherein the static sections each comprise a packing and/or trays.

13. The evaporator of claim 1 , wherein the evaporator additionally comprises a second collector for collecting a liquid and/or a distributor for distributing a liquid.

14. A process to separate at least two components,
wherein to the evaporator of claim 1 , a first liquid feed stream comprising the at least two components is fed by means of the first inlet,
the feed stream passes into the evaporator sub-unit, in which a vapor stream is formed from the feed stream by means of heat and mass transfer in an evaporating means,
wherein the vapor stream exits in a upward direction from the sub-unit, and wherein the remaining non-vaporized feed stream exits in a downward direction from the sub-unit and is subsequently removed as a first liquid output stream comprising a first component of the at least two components by means of the first outlet,
the vapor stream passes into the internal subunit,
the vapor stream passes into the heat exchanger sub-unit, in which a heat transfer occurs in a heat exchanging means between the vapor stream and a liquid stream, wherein, if the liquid stream is the feed stream the heat transfer occurs prior to the feed stream passing into the vessel through the first inlet,
wherein a first portion of the vapor stream is condensed within the condenser sub-unit in a condensing means to form a first condensed stream which is partially or fully withdrawn from the evaporator and/or returned by means of gravity to the evaporator sub-unit and a second non-condensed portion of the vapor stream is removed as a first vapor stream comprising a second component of the at least two components by means of the second outlet.

15. The process of claim 14 , wherein the vapor stream contains a mist and the mist is removed from the vapor stream in the internal subunit, and the mist is withdrawn from the evaporator and/or returned by means of gravity to the evaporator sub-unit.

16. The process of claim 14 , wherein the feed stream and the first liquid output stream comprise a compound having a thermal degradation temperature of from 10 to 300° C.

17. The process of claim 16 , wherein the compound comprised in the feed stream and the first liquid output stream has a viscosity at the operating temperature of less than or equal to 20 millipascal-second.

18. The process of claim 14 , wherein the feed stream and the first vapor stream comprise a solvent.

19. The process of claim 14 , wherein the pressure within the evaporator sub-unit is less than 10 mbar.

20. A method for using evaporator of claim 1 , comprising the steps of providing the evaporator of claim 1 and using it in the purification and/or concentration of a compound having a thermal degradation temperature of from 10 to 300° C., and/or in the removal of a solvent, or in the separation of a compound having a boiling point under atmospheric pressure at a temperature above its thermal decomposition temperature.

Assignees

• Sulzer Chemtech Ag

Inventors

• Gentner Michel

Classifications

• B01D5/006

  with evaporation or distillation · CPC title

• B01D3/14

  Fractional distillation {or use of a fractionation or rectification column} · CPC title

• B01D5/009 Primary

  Collecting, removing and/or treatment of the condensate · CPC title

• B01D5/0075

  with heat exchanging (B01D5/0039 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B01D1/065

  by film evaporating · CPC title