Continuous solid-state separation device and process for producing fuel ethanol

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10239806-B2
Application number	US-201514958563-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 3, 2015
Priority date	Aug 7, 2013
Publication date	Mar 26, 2019
Grant date	Mar 26, 2019

Abstract

The present invention belongs to the technology field of microbial fermentation of the sugar-containing raw materials for producing fuel ethanol. It specifically relates to a continuous separation device and process for producing fuel ethanol. The device is continuous distillation device, and is improvement of the distillation device in the prior art. The present invention utilizes a continuous ethanol separation process, which can make full use of fermentable sugar of the sweet sorghum straw (or sugar cane, sugar beet), increase ethanol yield, change the traditional mode of production, truly realize continuous ethanol separation process; and the waste materials produced in the procedure of distillation can be used either as fuel, or as animal feed, and this not only saves the cost, but also is greatly significant in environmental protection.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A device for continuously separating fuel ethanol from solid-state fermentation materials, the device comprising:
a housing ( 212 ),
a screw conveyor for feeding ( 210 ) connecting with an inlet of the housing ( 212 ),
a discharging bin ( 217 ) and a screw conveyor for discharging ( 218 ) connecting with an outlet of the housing ( 212 ),
a rotation shaft ( 207 ) located on a center axis of the housing ( 212 ), and
a driving motor ( 201 ) connecting with the rotation shaft ( 207 ),
characterized in that:
under the screw conveyor for feeding ( 210 ), on an inside wall of the housing ( 212 ) is provided a distributing plate grid ( 208 );
an inside of the housing ( 212 ) along the longitudinal direction has alcohol distillation components and drying components, wherein the drying components are located under the alcohol distillation components and connect with the alcohol distillation components, the alcohol distillation components are composed of a plurality of tower trays ( 214 ) connected in series with the rotation shaft, each of the plurality of tower trays ( 214 ) is a hollow body made up by two plates and a side wall, on an upper plate are uniformly distributed gaps of ϕ0.1-5 mm (or wire mesh sintering plate with a certain porosity) for steam passing through, and on each of the plurality of tower trays ( 214 ) are provided a tower tray rotary grid ( 213 ) and a tower tray fan-shaped hole ( 215 );
a steam inlet of the alcohol distillation components is located at the bottom of the alcohol distillation components, and a steam outlet is located at the top of the alcohol distillation components;
the drying components are composed of a plurality of heating discs ( 214 ′) connected in series with the rotation shaft, wherein each of the plurality of heating discs ( 214 ′) is a hollow body made up by two plates and a side wall, and the chamber of the hollow body is provided with steam folding baffles ( 206 ), and is input with water vapor;
the side wall of the heating disc ( 214 ′) is symmetrically provided with a steam inlet and a steam outlet;
each of the plurality of heating discs ( 214 ′) is also provided with a heating disc rotary grid ( 213 ′) and a heating disc fan-shaped hole ( 215 ′);
the steam inlets of the alcohol distillation components and the heating discs ( 214 ′) are respectively connected with a main line for steam inputting ( 216 ), and the steam outlet of the alcohol distillation components is connected with an upper steam outlet ( 211 ) at the top of the housing, so that the steam directly enters into a rectifying tower for rectifying;
the steam outlet of the drying components are connected with a main line for steam outputting ( 205 ) under the housing, and a main line for steam outputting ( 205 ) at the end is provided with a gas-liquid separator ( 203 ), to separate steam and condensate.

2. The device for continuously separating fuel ethanol from solid-state fermentation materials as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that: the plurality of heating disc fan-shaped holes ( 215 ′) on the plurality of heating discs ( 214 ′) in the vertical direction successively shift a distance of the size of the fan-shaped hole ( 215 ′) opposite to rotation direction of the heating disc rotary grid ( 213 ′).

3. The device for continuously separating fuel ethanol from solid-state fermentation materials as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that: the temperature inside the device is kept via using thermal insulating materials on the outside wall of the housing ( 212 ), using a jacket structure or an electric heating zone, and the temperature inside the device is kept at 100° C. or above.

4. The device for continuously separating fuel ethanol from solid-state fermentation materials as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that: the distributing plate grid ( 208 ) is a distributor consisting of several pieces of grid plates, and fermentation materials inputted by the screw conveyor for feeding ( 210 ), after being distributed by the distributor, will be uniformly distributed in the rotary grid on the surface of the heating disc.

5. The device for continuously separating fuel ethanol from solid-state fermentation materials as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that: the rotary grid ( 213 , 213 ′) is made up by two cylinder plate grids connected via several of straight plate grids, the center of the rotary grid ( 213 , 213 ′) is fixed on the rotation shaft ( 207 ) which goes throughout the center of each of the plurality of heating discs ( 214 ′), and the rotary grid ( 213 , 213 ′) rotates along with the rotation shaft ( 207 ).

6. The device for continuously separating fuel ethanol from solid-state fermentation materials as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that: each of the plurality of tower trays ( 214 ) is made up by perforated plate or wire mesh sintered plate.

Assignees

• Univ Tsinghua

Inventors

• Li Shizhong
• Li Guangming

Classifications

• Y02E50/17

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• B01D3/002

  by continuous methods · CPC title

• B01L3/08

  Flasks · CPC title

• C07C31/08

  Ethanol · CPC title

• C12M21/12 Primary

  for producing fuels or solvents (C12M21/04 takes precedence; liquid carbonaceous fuels C10L1/00, solid fuels C10L5/00) · CPC title