Rate-based modeling for internally heat-integrated distillation column (HIDiC) in binary system

Abstract

 A rate-based model of an internally heat-integrated distillation column (HIDiC) with structured packings was developed and the separation of benzene-toluene binary mixture was simulated. The developed model was applied to a bench-scale HIDiC to evaluate the separation and operation performance. The validity of the simulation results was confirmed with experimental data obtained from the HIDiC bench plant. The simulation results were also compared with those obtained from the conventional equilibrium model, which showed that the present model can predict the behavior of the bench plant more accurately than the conventional equilibrium model. The energy-saving ratio of the HIDiC system could also be investigated using this rate-based simulator.