Inventors:
Burke F. Brush - Harrison OH
Raphael Katzen - Cincinnati OH
Assignee:
Raphael Katzen Associates International, Inc. - Cincinnati OH
International Classification:
B01D 314
C07C 2980
C07C 3108
Abstract:
An improved distillation method and apparatus are provided for recovering hydrous ethanol from fermentation or synthetic feedstocks. Substantial energy savings are realized by utilizing a pair of stripper-rectifier towers in which overhead vapors from one tower operating at a higher pressure supply the heat required for the other tower operating at a lower pressure and by preheating the feedstock in multiple heat exchange steps. The feedstock is split into two portions of unequal size, the larger portion being supplied to the higher pressure tower and the smaller portion to the lower pressure tower.