Process Appreciation Conclusion (2/02/2016)

o Include tables / tick comparison

Write up mass balance (1/02/2016)
Write up energy balance? (2/02/2016)
Gaussian plume dispersion model (3/02/2016)

Mass Balance MAN recovery

This section involved the separation of a water-maleic anhydride mixture into nearly pure
components of each via distillation. Distillation was applicable for this mixture due to the
large discrepancy in boiling points, which was 202 C (maleic anhydride) and 100 C
(demineralised water). Notably the distillation was binary, with water being the light
component and maleic anhydride the heavy component. The general balance equation given
earlier as Equation X was simplified knowing that the column would operate continuously
at steady-state conditions with no reaction taking place, thus the generation, accumulation
and consumption terms became zero, giving:
input=output
An overall mass balance from this guiding principle was derived and shown by Equation X:
m
26=m
32+ m
29
Note that the stream notation used was in accordance with the master flow sheet, where:

26: Distillation column input

29: Demineralised water top product
32: Maleic anhydride bottom product

Intermediate streams such as the boiler and condenser recycles were not evaluated in this
mass balance as it only considered the overall change, and also at this stage the recycle ratios
had not been determined. A recovery of maleic anhydride greater than 99.0 wt% was required
for the by-product to be suitable for commerce. Given the large differences in boiling points,
the assumption that no maleic anhydride would be found in the column top was made.
Column feed and compositions were also known from the scrubber section, hence it was
inferred that:
x 32, MAN =0.99, x 29, MAN =0.00
As the distillation was binary, the compositions of demineralised water could be simply be
found by subtracting the mass fraction of MAN from 1, giving:

29, H 2 O=1.00
32, H 2 O=0.01, x
x
Where the subscript H2O* refers explicitly to demineralised water. The compositions of both
the feed, top and bottoms product was now known and a simple degree of freedom
calculation with reference to Figure X.

Figure 1: supplementary diagram to carry out a degree of freedom analysis over the maleic
anhydride recovery distillation column.

There were two species for this process, from which two independent equations were written
as:
m
26 x26, MAN = m
32 x 32, MAN + m
29 x 29, MAN
29, H 2 O
32, H 2 O+ m
29 x
32 x
26, H 2 O=m
26 x
m
From Figure X it was apparent that the only two unknowns were

m
32 and m
29 . With two

unknowns and two independent equations, the degree of freedom of analysis could be carried
out below:
ndf =nunknowns nindependent equations =22=0
Thus the system was deemed solvable. The balance was first carried out with respect to
maleic anhydride as it had no presence in the top stream (eliminating stream 26) hence
simplifying Equation X to:
m
26 x26, MAN = m
29 x 29, MAN

29 m
29= 1.29 0.04 0.26 kg (3 sf )
7.35 0.04=0.99 m
0.99
hr
Knowing the mass flow rate of the top stream, the mass flow rate of the bottom stream was
29 into Equation X and rearranging for
calculated by re-substituting the obtained value of m
m
32 .

32 +0.26 m
32 =1.290.26=1.03
1.29=m

kg
(3 sf )
hr

Converting from a mass basis to a moles basis was achieved similarly to previous sections
with use of Equation X.
n j=

m
j
MW j

Each species was calculated in terms of moles and mole fraction via Equation X. In Tables XX the calculated values can be seen for the maleic anhydride recovery section.

Component, j

Molar flow
rate, nj
(kmol/hr)
Maleic anhydride
0.00261344
3
Demineralised water 0.05717962
6
Total
0.05979306
9

Component, j

Maleic anhydride
Demineralised water
Total

Component, j

Maleic anhydride
Demineralised water
Total

Stream 26
Mole fraction,
Mass flow
yj
rate, mj
(kg/hr)
0.043724
0.25611743
5
0.956276
1.02923326
7
1.00
1.28535070
2

Mass fraction, xj

0.199319
0.800681
1.00

Stream 29
Molar flow Mole fraction, yj Mass flow Mass fraction, xj
rate, nj
rate, mj
(kmol/hr)
(kg/hr)
0.002613443 0.94787234
0.256117
0.99
0.000143725 0.05212766
0.002587
0.01
0.002757168 1.00
0.258704
1.00

Molar flow
rate, nj
(kmol/hr)
0.00
0.057036
0.057036

Stream 32
Mole fraction, yj Mass flow Mass fraction, xj
rate, mj
(kg/hr)
000
0.00
0.00
1.00
1.026646
0.10
1.00
158.0122
1.00