Section 4

Design of Vacuum
Distillation Column
(DC-203)

by Syed Muzammil Iqbal

KEK130703
Executive Summary
Introduction
In the production of Dimer Acid Plant, dimer acid is manufactured through dimerization of oleic
acid catalyzed by bentonite clay in the packed-bed reactor (R-201). To achieve high yield of
dimer acid, a series of purification processes are involved upstream of R-201 to increase the
purity of oleic acid for dimerization process. This work focuses on the design of vacuum
distillation column (DC-203) which is able to separate fatty acids and crude palm kernel oil thus
increasing the purity of oleic acid. The feed for DC-203 is a liquid product stream (056) from
fractionating column FC-201 which essentially is a mixture of C16-C18 fatty acids and crude
palm kernel oil. By using DC-203, stream (055) is separated into distillate and bottom stream
which is rich in fatty acids and crude palm kernel oil respectively. The objective of this
separation is to recover oleic acid from the liquid product stream of fractionating column
(FC201) so that higher conversion of oleic acid can be achieved in the packed bed reactor (R-
201) to produce dimer acid. The distillation column (DC-203) is shown in Figure 1 below.

Figure 1: Process flow diagram (PFD) of Dimer acid production plant.

Chemical Engineering Design

The design of the column is based on the following assumptions:-
1. Constant physical properties of chemical species throughout the column
2. Constant molal overflow across each tray
3. Steady-state operation of the column
4. No thermal degradation of any component within the column
5. Recovery of 0.99 for top and bottom

The design includes the design of distillation column, tray, condenser and reboiler. The column
is operated at 0.013 bars and 258˚C. Two types of distillation columns are identified of which the
tray column is selected as it is commonly used for large scale distillation processes and has the
tendency to cope with high mass flowrates.

FUG method is used to estimate number of plates and reflux ratio for distillation column. The
method provides a fast and accurate design method for multicomponent distillation system.
Besides, general considerations including complex calculation, trial and error
calculation and empirical correlations are used to estimate different parameters of distillation
columns. Tray design is also included in the chemical engineering design of DC-03 using the
methods outlined in Coulson & Richardson’s Chemical Engineering (6th ed. Vol. 1). The
summary of the design outcomes is listed in Table 1.

Distillation Column Tray/Plate

Optimum Reflux Ratio, R 2.36 Hole Diameter, Dh 5.5mm
Plate Efficiency, Eo 74.39% Hole Pitch, Ip 15.46mm
Number of Actual Stages, Nact 16 stages Downcomer Area, Ad 0.33m2
Feed point location, Nr 11th stage Net Area, An 2.45m2
Column Diameter, Dc 1.88m Active Area, Aa 2.11m2
Column Area, Ac 2.78m2 Hole Area, AH 0.211m2
Total Plate Pressure Drop, ΔP 0.00912 bar Area of one hole, Ah 2.38 × 10-5 m2
Flooding velocity, uf 2.488m/s Total Number of holes, 8880
Tray Spacing 0.6m Plate Thickness, tp 5mm
Tower Height 8.13m Plate Spacing, lp 0.6m
3
Volumetric Flowrate, Q 5.185m /s Weir height, hw 50mm of liquid
Height to Diameter ratio 4.32 Weir length, lw 1.27m
Table 1: Summary of chemical engineering design of vacuum distillation column, DC-203

Mechanical Engineering Design

Mechanical engineering design is carried out to check the feasibility of DC-203 hence
estimating the cost of equipment. The design focuses on avoiding the equipment to leak or fail
calamitously during the operation and ensures that the equipment operates well under operating
conditions. For this equipment, ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section VIII: Rules
for Construction of Pressure Vessel is used which outlines the general requirements for all
methods of construction and all materials. The material of construction used in the distillation
column is assumed to be stainless steel 304 due to its exceptional hardness and strengths and
corrosion resistant properties when compared to carbon steel and stainless steel 316. This type
of material is chosen for many industrial equipment as the relative cost is cheaper compared to
other materials. Foam glass of thickness 20mm is used as part of the column shell to prevent
heat loss to surrounding as a safety precaution.
 The column head for DC-203 is tori spherical with the column supported by a straight skirt.
Moreover, stress analysis is performed to ensure that the column is remained erected and
maintained in place even in the presence of strong wind. Besides, the pipe sizes are optimized
based on the flow rate and density of fluid and chose based on standard piping schedule. The
summary of mechanical design is listed in Table 2.

Parameters Design Outcomes

Material of Construction Stainless Steel 304
Reactor Head Closure Tori spherical
Wall Thickness 3.64mm
Total Column Weight 2.64 tons
Column Head Thickness 18.14mm
Height of Skirt 4m
Compressive Stress 35.44 MPa
Insulation Material Foam glass
Insulation Thickness 20mm
Table 2: Summary of mechanical engineering design of vacuum distillation column, DC-203.

Safety, Health and Environmental Considerations

Safety, health and environmental considerations are taken into consideration for the operation of
DC-203. The safety of substances that are involved in the process are analyzed using Material
safety Data Sheet (MSDS) of the materials. Other risk analysis tools such as Bowtie Diagrams
for Hazard Analysis, Hazard Identification (HAZID) Analysis and Hazard and Operability
(HAZOP) study are exercised to identify and evaluate problems that may represent risks to
personnel or equipment in workplace or prevent efficient process operation. From the analysis,
main possible hazards would be the implosion of the vacuum distillation column.
The installation of pressure relief valves for pressure vessels, and bleed valves for suction and
discharge streams of pressure changers form part of the mitigation strategy that reduces the
severity of the adverse consequences posed by risks that has occurred. Lastly, prevention step
using (HAZOP) is carried out for every stream of the column where it includes back-up control
system, employee training and emergency shutdown system.

Process Instrumentation and Control Strategy

Control systems must be carefully designed to ensure safe operation of processing plant and to
maintain the quality of the final product. Basic types of control system include level, flow,
temperature and pressure control systems. The temperature and pressure in equipment will affect
the quality of the final product so they are monitored and controlled. Besides, the flowrate of
each stream must be controlled properly to ensure that the distillation column complies with the
design capacity and requirement. Moreover, a system of safety alarm is required to alert the
operators potentially hazardous or deviation in the process plant. There are five control loops
spanning across the distillation column and its auxiliary equipment, which encompasses the
control of process pressure, temperature, tank level and flow rate and these are listed in Table 3.
A detailed piping and instrumentation diagram (P&ID) is shown in Figure 2.
Loop Function Set point Manipulated variable
1 To control feed flow rate entering the column 3153.93 kg/hr Mass flow rate
2 To control pressure in column 0.013 bar Amount of steam
3 To maintain reflux ratio 2.36 Reflux flow rate
4 To control temperature at Bottom 258˚C Steam flow rate
5 To control inventory level inside the column - Bottom flow rate
Table 3: Summary of control system of vacuum distillation column, DC-203.

Equipment Cost Estimation

A cost estimation study performed to determine the cost of the distillation unit. The purchased
equipment cost is estimated using factorial method of cost estimation data. (Sinnott & Towler,
2008). Cost estimation includes cost of vessel, trays, platforms, ladders, ejector, flanges, etc.
Chemical Engineering Plant Cost Index (CEPCI) is used to bring the cost to 2019. The total cost
of distillation unit is estimated to be 2.65 Million MYR.

Conclusion
In conclusion, vacuum distillation column (DC-203) has been designed to produce 17524.03 MT
oleic acid annually. Detailed chemical and mechanical engineering design have been performed.
Safety considerations have been given through tools such as HAZOP to ensure safe operation
from the aspect of personnel or process. To sum up all, all the design objectives have been met.
3.1 Introduction
3.1.1 Process Flowsheet
In production of Dimer Acid, there are two process plants involved which are upstream
process and downstream process. Upstream deals with purification of process while downstream
process is mostly related to production of Dimer Acid. Purification process contains a series of
distillation columns. Oleic acid has to be separated from the feed stream as it will be dimerized
to produce Dimer Acid. DC-203 is the vacuum distillation column that is employed to remove
crude palm kernel oil from the feed stream thus recovering oleic acid. HR-PIB will be flashed
out in flash tank BD-201 with 95% purity.
Distillation is the most common separation technique in chemical process industry, accounting
for 90-95% of the separation operations.