Process design and intensification of multicomponent azeotropes special distillation separation via molecular simulation and system optimization

This work provides an overview of distillation processes,including process design for different distillation processes,selection of entrainers for special distillation processes,system integration and intensification of distillation processes,optimization of process parameters for distillation processes and recent research progress in dynamic control strategies.Firstly,the feasibility of using thermodynamic topological theories such as residual curve,phase equilibrium line and distillation boundary line to analyze different separation regions is discussed,and the rationality of distillation process design is discussed by using its feasibility.Secondly,the application of molecular simulation methods such as molecular dynamics simulation and quantum chemical calculation in the screening of entrainer is discussed for the extractive distillation process.The thermal coupling mechanism of different distillation processes is used to explore the process of different process intensifications.Next,a mixed integer nonlinear optimization strategy for the distillation process based on different algorithms is introduced.Finally,the improvement of dynamic control strategies for different distillation processes in recent years is summarized.This work focuses on the application of process intensification and system optimization in the design of distillation process,and analyzes the challenges,prospects,and development trends of distillation technology in the separation of multicomponent azeotropes.

Study on an improved rotating microchannel separator in the intensification for demulsification and separation process

An improved rotating microchannel(IRM) separator was further explored in the intensification for demulsification and separation process. Oil-in-water(O/W) emulsion system of 2-ethylhexyl phosphoric acid-2-ethylhexyl ester(P507)–water without emulsifier was employed to evaluate the performance of the new equipment. In this experiment, the influence on demulsification separation process was explored by changing the geometrical structure and channel height of the microchannel and combining the liquid–liquid two-phase flow pattern, and the correlation general graph between demulsification efficiency and dimensionless parameters was established. The total demulsification effect of the IRM and the separation capacity of the clear organic phase recovered from demulsification are significantly improved. In addition, the liquid–liquid two-phase flow pattern of the clear organic phase after demulsification and the remaining emulsion in the IRM are observed and recorded by high-speed photography. The separation ability of organic phase from the upper outlet can be significantly improved when the total demulsification rate of IRM is up to 90%. There are 3 types and 6 kinds of flow patterns observed. The results demonstrated that the suitable demulsification performance is obtained when the liquid–liquid two-phase inside the IRM is in a parallel pattern. Finally, the relation map between total demulsification efficiency and the universal flow is drawn, which provides a basis for the accurate control of the IRM device.

Loose-stratification model in separation process for vanadium pre-concentration from stone coal

A technology of one-stage roughing and one-stage scavenging vanadium pre-concentration with shaking table was investigated for improving vanadium grade and decreasing acid consumption minerals content based on the quantitative evaluation of minerals by scanning electronic microscopy （QEMSCAN）. In order to visually illustrate how the vanadium-bearing minerals were separated from system, a loose-stratification model was established with Bagnold shear loose theory and Kelly stratification hypothesis. Through the model, it was inferred that fine fraction and coarse fraction of vanadium-bearing muscovite particles easily became the concentrate in roughing and scavenging stages, respectively. The type of the dominant effect on the loose-stratification was confirmed. In the roughing stage, gravity sedimentation played a leading role in the loose-stratification process. However, in the scavenging stage, shearing dispersion pressure caused by asymmetric motion of table deck took an important part in the loose-stratification process. Finally, the correction of the loose-stratification model was validated by the practical experiment.

Recent advances on the membrane processes for CO_2 separation

Membrane separation technology has popularized rapidly and attracts much interest in gas industry as a promising sort of newly chemical separation unit operation. In this paper, recent advances on membrane processes for CO_2 separation are reviewed. The researches indicate that the optimization of operating process designs could improve the separation performance, reduce the energy consumption and decrease the cost of membrane separation systems. With the improvement of membrane materials recently,membrane processes are beginning to be competitive enough for CO_2 separation, especially for postcombustion CO_2 capture, biogas upgrading and natural gas carbon dioxide removal, compared with the traditional separation methods. We summarize the needs and most promising research directions for membrane processes for CO_2 separation in current and future membrane applications. As the time goes by, novel membrane materials developed according to the requirement proposed by process optimization with increased selectivity and/or permeance will accelerate the industrialization of membrane process in the near future. Based on the data collected in a pilot scale test, more effort could be made on the optimization of membrane separation processes. This work would open up a new horizon for CO_2 separation/Capture on Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage(CCUS).

Three-Dimensional Numerical Investigation of the Separation Process in a Vortex Tube at Different Operating Conditions

Air separators provide safe, clean, and appropriate air flow to engines and are widely used in vehicles with large engines such as ships and submarines. In this operational study, the separation process in a Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube cleaning （cooling） system is investigated to analyze the impact of the operating gas type on the vortex tube performance; the operating gases used are air, nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. The computational fluid dynamic model used is equipped with a three-dimensional structure, and the steady-state condition is applied during computations. The standard k-c turbulence model is employed to resolve nonlinear flow equations, and various key parameters, such as hot and cold exhaust thermal drops, and power separation rates, are described numerically. The results show that nitrogen dioxide creates the greatest separation power out of all gases tested, and the numerical results are validated by good agreement with available experimental data. In addition, a comparison is made between the use of two different boundary conditions, the pressure-far-field and the pressure-outlet, when analyzing complex turbulent flows in the air separators. Results present a comprehensive and practical solution for use in future numerical studies.

Recovery of iron from copper tailings via low-temperature direct reduction and magnetic separation: process optimization and mineralogical study

Currently, the majority of copper tailings are not effectively developed. Worldwide, large amounts of copper tailings generated from copper production are continuously dumped, posing a potential environmental threat. Herein, the recovery of iron from copper tailings via low-temperature direct reduction and magnetic separation was conducted; process optimization was carried out, and the corresponding mineralogy was investigated. The reduction time, reduction temperature, reducing agent (coal), calcium chloride additive, grinding time, and magnetic field intensity were examined for process optimization. Mineralogical analyses of the sample, reduced pellets, and magnetic concentrate under various conditions were performed by X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry to elucidate the iron reduction and growth mechanisms. The results indicated that the optimum parameters of iron recovery include a reduction temperature of 1150A degrees C, a reduction time of 120 min, a coal dosage of 25%, a calcium chloride dosage of 2.5%, a magnetic field intensity of 100 mT, and a grinding time of 1 min. Under these conditions, the iron grade in the magnetic concentrate was greater than 90%, with an iron recovery ratio greater than 95%.

Machine learning-based ionic liquids design and process simulation for CO_(2) separation from flue gas

Rational design of ionic liquids(ILs),which is highly dependent on the accuracy of the model used,has always been crucial for CO_(2)separation from flue gas.In this study,a support vector machine(SVM)model which is a machine learning approach is established,so as to improve the prediction accuracy and range of IL melting points.Based on IL melting points data with 600 training data and 168 testing data,the estimated average absolute relative deviations(AARD)and squared correlation coefficients(R^(2))are 3.11%,0.8820 and 5.12%,0.8542 for the training set and testing set of the SVM model,respectively.Then,through the melting points model and other rational design processes including conductor-like screening model for real solvents(COSMO-RS)calculation and physical property constraints,cyano-based ILs are obtained,in which tetracyanoborate[TCB]-is often ruled out due to incorrect estimation of melting points model in the literature.Subsequently,by means of process simulation using Aspen Plus,optimal IL are compared with excellent IL reported in the literature.Finally,1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tricyanomethanide[EMIM][TCM]is selected as a most suitable solvent for CO_(2)separation from flue gas,the process of which leads to 12.9%savings on total annualized cost compared to that of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)amide[EMIM][Tf_(2)N].

Process Design of Continuous-Flow Pervaporation Separation for Alcohol Dehydration

The separation characteristics of the PVA-CS (polyvinyl alcohol-chitosan) blended composite membrane for dehydration of ethanol-water mixture are examined. The relationships of flux and separation factor with the feed concentration and operation temperature are established. Using this correlated equation, the continuous-flow pervaporation process about 500 kilolitres/year dehydrated ethanol is designed. The numbers of stage and reheater are calculated by stage-by-stage method for two kinds of cascades: one with equal membrane area and the other with 10℃ of temperature decrement per section. The results show that when the numbers of stage and reheater are the same, the cascade with 10℃ of temperature decrement has more advantages than that with equal membrane area. The influences of feed concentration and flow rate on the numbers of stage and reheater in the cascades are discussed.

Complex Processing of Pulverized Fly Ash by Dry Separation Methods

Pulverized fly ash (PFA) is produced about 500 billions tons every year in the world in a result of coals combustion. Most of the fly ash collected in power plants is disposed by deposition in landfills, situated as a rule near big cities with well developed infrastructure and high cost of land. Moreover, the pollution of environmental by fine solid wastes is inevitable and takes place in area of residing of a basic part of the population. The only solution is a complex processing of fine wastes with a production of value added materials. New conception of complex processing of PFA is proposed on the base of facilities of Electro-mass-classifier (EMC) and other techniques. The characterization of separated fractions was carried out by SEM and optic microscopy, XRD, laser diffraction, M?ssbauer spectroscopy and other methods. A fine fraction of glass microspheres presents the main interest as filler in various materials.

Application of the dividing wall column to olefin separation in fluidization methanol to propylene(FMTP) process

Dividing wall column(DWC)is shown to be energy efficient compared to conventional column sequence for multi components separation,which is used for olefin separation in fluidization methanol to propylene process in the present work.Detailed design for pilot DWC was performed and five control structures,i.e.composition control(CC),temperature control(TC),composition-temperature control(CC-TC),temperature difference control(TDC),double temperature difference control(DTDC)were proposed to circumvent feed disturbance.Sensitivity analysis and singular value decomposition(SVD)were used as criterion to select the controlled temperature locations in TC,CC-TC,TDC and DTDC control loops.The steady simulation result demonstrates that 25.7% and 30.2% duty can be saved for condenser and reboiler by substituting conventional column sequence with DWC,respectively.As for control structure selection,TC and TDC perform better than other three control schemes with smaller maximum deviation and shorter settling time.

An improvement in APOR process I-uranium/plutonium separation process

The reduction stripping behavior of Pu(IV)from 30%TBP/OK with hydroxysemicarbazide(HSC)was investigated,and the separation efficiency of HSC and DMHAN-MMH for U/Pu partitioning in Purex process was compared.The results show that HSC can effectively realize the separation of Pu from U;using mixer-settlers to simulate U/Pu separation in 1B bank of PUREX,from 16-stage counter current extraction experiment(in which6 stages for supplemental extraction,10 stages for stripping)with flow rate ratio(1BF:1BX:1BS)=4:1:1in 1B contactor,good result was achieved that the yields are both more than 99.99%for uranium and Pu,the separation factor of plutonium from uranium(SF4Pu/U)is 2.8×10,and separation factor of uranium from plutonium(SFU/Pu)is 5.9×104.As a stripping reductant,HSC can effectively achieve the separation of Pu from U and the separation effect is nearly the same with DMHAN-MMH,which contributed to replace enough the latter with HSC in the U/Pu separation in Advanced Purex Process Based on Organic Reagent(APOR)process.

A FUZZY MATCH BASED EXPERT SYSTEM FOR SYNTHESIS OF SEPARATION PROCESSES

A predictive parallel search algorithm,the fuzzy match inference strategy,is implemented ina prototype expert system.Selection of separation technologies and sequencing of separators are beingapproached in an integrated manner.The fuzzy match mechanism results in a relatively smaller subsetof favored schemes,constituting a hyperstructure for further quantitative evaluation and combinationoptimization.An industrial application example of aromatics extraction separation is presented.

PHASE SEPARATION AND MICROVOID FORMATION AT PHASE INTERFACES OF HYDROPHOBIC-HYDROPHILIC POLYMER BLENDS DURING WET PROCESSING

In this paper,morphological structure,thermodynamic compatibility and relationship be-tween porosities and blend ratios of the wet coagulated PU/PVA sheets were studied by meansof observation of scanning electronic micrographies,tests of dynamic mechanical properties,moisture regain and vapor permeability.Furthermore,the formation of microvoids at interfacesof separated phases was discussed and a microvoid formation mechanism at phase interfaces ofhydrophobic-hydrophilic blends was suggested and compared with that ofhydrophobic-hydrophobic blends.

Separation of Formate Ion from a Catalytic Mixture after a Hydrogenation Process of Bicarbonate Ion and Generation of Formic Acid—The Last Stage of the Formic Acid Cycle

Formic acid is recognized as a promising hydrogen carrier. It readily decomposes to release hydrogen (and carbon dioxide) in the presence of apposite catalysts. The main deficiency of this practice is that the reverse reaction, the hydrogenation of carbon dioxide to formic acid is an uphill reaction necessitating extreme conditions. Carbon dioxide should be converted to bicarbonate salts since their hydrogenation is reasonable for storing hydrogen. The related approach has a drawback as formate salts are produced. The latter has lower weight percentage of hydrogen and they must be converted to formic acid. The goals of our research were to separate formate salt from the reaction mixture and to convert it to formic acid. In this paper, we present a process that combines the advantages of both methodologies—formic acid is the carrier, but the hydrogen is charged to a bicarbonate ion. This stage completes the formic acid cycle (FAC), which could operate as a continuous process for the production and storage of hydrogen. Additional research, including proper rescaling and optimization, should be carried out in order to assess the potential of such a process as a basis for replacing the present day combustion of fossil fuels with hydrogen usage in fuel cells.

Separation Processes of Granular Materials by Sizes at the Sieve Classifiers

A mathematical model of the kinetics of thin-layer separation of granular materials by size stacked sieve classifiers based on the theory of Markov processes is constructed. The probability of screening in a cell in the shape and size of the holes and particle sieve material shared with the influence of the relative speed of their movement was determined. Residues on whole meal with sieves were identified by a kinetic model and numerical calculations, the efficacy of separation.

单生过程separationcutoff的基于特征值的判别准则

对于时间逆具有随机单调性的以{0,1,…,mn}({mn}为关于n单调增的自然数列)为状态空间且从0出发的单生过程族,利用其负转移速率矩阵第一非零特征值的正性及最快强平稳时的任意阶矩,可以由转移速率矩阵的特征值表示这些性质,得到该族马氏过程separation cutoff存在的一个基于特征值的判别准则,验证了Peres的乘积条件对于此类单生过程成立.

Selection of Multifractal Scaling Breaks andSeparation of Geochemical andGeophysical Anomaly

Spatially superimposed multiple processes such as multiplicative cascade processes often generate multifractal measures possessing so-called self-similarity or self-affinity that can be described by power- law type of functions within certain scale ranges The multifractalities can be estimated by applying multifractal modeling to the measures reflecting the characteristics of the physical processes such as the element concentration values analyzed in rock and soil samples and caused by the underlying mineralization processes and the other geological processes. The local and regional geological processes may result in geochemical patterns with distinct multifractalities as wall as variable scaling ranges. Separation of these multifractal measures on the basis of both the distinct multifractalities and the scaling ranges will be significant for both theoretical studies of multifractal modeling and its applications. Multifractal scaling breaks have been observed from various multifractal patterns. This paper introduces a technique for separating multifractal measures on the basis of scaling breaks. It has been demonstrated that the method is effective for decomposing geochemical and geophysical anomalies required for mineral exploration. A dataset containing the element concentration values of potassium and phosphorus in soil samples was employed for demonstrating the application of the method for studying the fertilizer and yield optimization in agriculture

Group separation of coal components and new ideas of coal utilization as petroleum

Four different groups of components were separated from coal under mild conditions of extraction and stripping process. Within these groups, and with pre-separation, individual utilization of all coal components can be realized, similar to petroleum components and enhance the inherent value and utilization value of coal, as well as increase environmental benefits. The characteristics of each component were analyzed with measurements by FTIR, GC/MS, TEM and the establishment of caking properties. The results show that coal can be separated into residues, ultra-pure coal, asphaltene components and light components by adding solvents for stripping into the CS2/NMP mixed extraction solution. Those four groups of components present great differences in the presence of carbon and hydrogen elements, in the structure of functional groups, in their macroscopic structure and micro-morphology and caking properties. Every component possesses its own inherent values and approaches. A new idea of coal processes and utilization, similar to the use of petroleum is proposed.

A continuous and high-efficiency process to separate coal bed methane with porous ZIF-8 slurry:Experimental study and mathematical modelling

Coal bed methane has been considered as an important energy resource.One major difficulty of purifying coal bed methane comes from the similar physical properties of CH_4 and N_2.The ZIF-8/water-glycol slurry was used as a medium to separate coal bed methane by fluidifying the solid adsorbent material.The sorption equilibrium experiment of binary mixture(CH_4/N_2)and slurry was conducted.The selectivity of CH_4 to N_2 is within the range of 2-6,which proved the feasibility of the slurry separation method.The modified Langmuir equation was used to describe the gas-slurry phase equilibrium behavior,and the calculated results were in good agreement with the experimental data.A continuous absorption-adsorption and desorption process on the separation of CH_4/N_2 in slurry is proposed and its mathematical model is also developed.Sensitivity analysis is conducted to determine the operation conditions and the energy performance of the proposed process was also evaluated.Feed gas contains 30 mol%of methane and the methane concentration in product gas is 95.46 mol%with the methane recovery ratio of 90.74%.The total energy consumption for per unit volume of product gas is determined as 1.846 kWh Nm^(-3).Experimental results and process simulation provide basic data for the design and operation of pilot and industrial plant.

SADDLE-POINT BASED SEPARATION OF TOUCHED OBJECTS IN 2-D IMAGE

In many image analysis and processing problems, discriminating the size and shape of each individual object in an aggregate pile projected in an image is an important practice. It is relatively easy to distinguish these features among the objects already separated from each other. The problems will be undoubtedly more complex and of greater challenge if the objects are touched or/and overlapped. This letter presents an algorithm that can be used to separate the touches and overlaps existing in the objects within a 2-D image. The approach is first to convert the gray-scale image to its corresponding binary one and then to the 3-D topographic one using the erosion operations. A template (or mask) is engineered to search the topographic surface for the saddle point, from which the segmenting orientation is determined followed by the desired separating operation. The algorithm is tested on a real image and the running result is adequately satisfying and encouraging.