Amiscua, Geraldine

Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

6.28) Oxygen and Nitrogen are to be produced by the fractional distillation of air at
a pressure of 101.3 kPa. The feed(79 mole percent nitrogen, 21 mole percent
oxygen) is 75% vapor. The composition of the distillate product, a vapor withdrawn
from the condenser, is to be 95 mole percent nitrogen. The bottoms product, a
liquid to be withdrawn from the bottom plate before the reboiler, is to have a
composition of 2 mole percent nitrogen.
(a) What percent of the oxygen in the feed will be recovered in the bottoms
product?
(b) What are the minimum reflux ratio and the minimum number of equilibrium
stages required for this separation?
(c) What reflux ratio would be required if a column with seven equilibrium stages
were used?
(d) For 100 moles/sec of feed, determine the liquid and the vapor flow rates in the
enriching section and in the stripping section for the column of part (c)?
(e) What is the temperature of the reboiler liquid? of the condenser liquid?
(f) What is the reboiler duty? the condenser duty?

Given:

V1

L0
F

Amiscua, Geraldine
Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

Data

P=101.3 kPa
z F =0.79
y D =0.95
x W =0.02
q=10.75=0.25
Required:
a)

%recovery ( O 2 )W

(b)

Rmin and N min

N theo =7
(c) R if
(d) For F=100 mol/ s ,

Lm

and

V m for the column of part (c)?

(e) What is the temperature of the reboiler liquid? of the condenser liquid?
(f)

qR

and

qC

Solution:
(a) Basis: F=100 mol/ s
OMB:

100=D+W
MVCB:

(1)

Amiscua, Geraldine
Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

79=0.95 D+0.02 W

(2)

Solving equations (1) and (2) simultaneously:

D=82.796 mol /s

W =17.204 mol/ s

%recovery ( O 2 )W =

( 1x W ) W
100
( 1z F ) F

%recovery ( O2 )W =

( 10.02 ) 17.204
100
( 10.79 ) 100

%recovery ( O 2 )W =80.29
(b) Minimum Number of Stages and Minimum Reflux Ratio

Amiscua, Geraldine
Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

McCabe-Thiele Diagram
1.00
0.90
0.80
0.70
0.60
y

0.50
0.40
0.30
0.20
0.10
0.00
0.00

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80

0.90

x
Feed Line

equilibrium curve

45-Degree Line

Distillate Line

Bottoms Line

Distillate-Pinch Line

Enriching Operating Line

Stripping Operating Line

Stages

N min =5.39
xD
=0.67
R min +1

1.00

Amiscua, Geraldine
Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

0.95
=0.67
R min +1
Rmin =0.418
(c) N=7+1=8, 7 stages in the column + 1 partial condenser

McCabe-Thiele Diagram
1.00
0.90
0.80
0.70
0.60
y

0.50
0.40
0.30
0.20
0.10
0.00
0.00

0.10

0.20

0.30

0.40

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80

x
Feed Line

equilibrium curve

45-Degree Line

Distillate Line

Bottoms Line

Distillate-Pinch Line

Enriching Operating Line

Stripping Operating Line

Stages

0.90

1.00

Amiscua, Geraldine
Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

For N=8 ,

R=0.7 .

(d)
Assuming constant molal overflow:

V m=0.75 F
V m=0.75(100)
V m=75 mol /s

R=

L0
D

0.7=

L0
D

L0=0.7 D=0.7(82.796) mol /s

L0=57.9572 mol/ s

Lm=L0 +0.25 F
Lm=57.9572+0.25(100)
Lm=82.9572

mol
s

Lm=Ln =W +B

Amiscua, Geraldine
Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

82.9572=17.204+ B
B=65.7532 mol/ s

V 1=B+V m
V 1=65.7532+75
V 1=140.7532 mol/ s
(e) For Nitrogen
Vapor pressure constants
Substance
Nitrogen
Oxygen

C1
58.282
51.245

ln P=C 1+

C2
-1084.1
-1200.2

C3
-8.3144
-6.4361

C2
C5
+C 3 ln T +C 4 T
T

Reboiler Liquid Ln-W

0

xW P = yW PT
58.282

( 0.02 ) e

1084.1
2
8.3144 ln T+ 4.417210 T
T

=0.02(101325)

T =77.32 K
Similarly for the condenser liquid

( 0.84 ) e

58.282

1084.1
2
8.3144ln T +4.4172 10 T
T

=0.95(101325)

T =79.50 K
(f)
Quadratic Model for Enthalpy (saturated vapour)

C4
4.4127E-02
2.8405E-02

C5
1
1

Amiscua, Geraldine
Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

H=0.267 y 20.053 y +6.82 R = 0.998

Linear Model for Enthalpy (saturated liquid)

h=0.9942 x +0.865
R = 0.998
Nitrogen Balance at the Condenser:

x 1 V 1=x 0 L0+ x D D
x 1 ( 140.7532 )=0.84 ( 57.9572 ) +0.95( 82.796)
x 1=0.90
Enthalpy Balance around the condenser:
Stream

V1

Composition
(nitrogen mole
fraction)
0.90

State

Saturated Vapor

6.556 103

L0

0.84

Saturated Liquid

1.629 103

0.95

Saturated Vapor

6.529 10

LN

0.02

Saturated Liquid

0.885 103

0.02

Saturated Vapor

6.819 103

0.02

Saturated Liquid

0.885 103

Energy Balance around the condenser

V 1 H V =q c + L0 h L + D H D
q c =V 1 H V L0 hL D H D
qC =140.7532 ( 6.556 103 )57.9572 ( 1.629 103 ) 82.796(6.529 10 3)

Enthalpy(J/mol)

Amiscua, Geraldine
Aries, Allen Jerry

Bedrio, Shaira Karlene

Jardenil, Stephen Paul
BSChE-5

qC =287790.62 J
Energy balance around the reboiler:

q R + Ln h L=W hW +B H B
q R =W hW + B H BLn h L
q R =17.204 ( 0.885 x 103 ) +65.7532 ( 6.819 x 103 ) 82.9572 ( 0.885 x 103 )
q R =390179.49 J
Solving for the condenser duty

QC =

qC
D

QC =

287790.62
82.796

QC =3,475.90 J /mol

Solving for the reboiler duty

QR =

qR
W

QR =

390179.49
17.204

QR =22,679.58 J /mol