Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

DESIGN OF ABSORBPTION TOWER

5.1 ABSORPTION

The removal of one or more component from the mixture of gases by using a suitable
solvent is second major operation of Chemical Engineering that based on mass transfer.

In gas absorption a soluble vapors are more or less absorbed in the solvent from its
mixture with inert gas. The 'purpose of such gas scrubbing operations may be any of the
following;

 For Separation of component having the economic value.

 As a stage in the preparation of some compound.
 For removing of undesired component (pollution).

5.2 TYPES OF ABSORPTION

 Physical absorption
 Chemical Absorption.

5.2.1 Physical Absorption

In physical absorption mass transfer take place purely by diffusion and physical
absorption is governed by the physical equilibrium.

5.2.2 Chemical Absorption

In this type of absorption as soon as a particular component comes in contact with the
absorbing liquid a chemical reaction take place. Then by reducing the concentration of
component in the liquid phase, which enhances the rate of diffusion.

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

5.3 TYPES OF ABSORBERS

There are two major types of absorbers which are used for absorption purposes:

 Packed column
 Plate column

5.4 COMPARISON BETWEEN PACKED AND PLATE COLUMN

 The plate column is used for high liquid flow rates while in the packed column liquid
flow rates are not so high, that’s why plate column is preferred.

 For column diameter of less than approximately 3 ft. It is more usual to employ plate
column because of high fabrication cost of small trays. But if the column is very large
then the liquid distribution is problem and large volume of packing and its weight is
problem.

 Pressure drop in plate column is less than the packed column. In packed column there is
additional friction generated as the vapour passes through the liquid on each tray. If
there are large No. of Plates in the tower, this pressure drop may be quite high and the
use of plate column could effect considerable saving.

 Because of the liquid on each plate there may be a large quantity of the liquid in plate
column, whereas in a packed tower the liquid flows as a thin film over the packing.

 In plate column, man holes are placed for maintenance and cleaning purposes while in
packed column there are not such types of holes are placed. In packed column
cleanliness is a very tough job.

 In plate column, temperature changes are involved while in packed column there is no
large temperature changes involved.

 In packed column, there is a large problem related to corrosion but in the plate column,
corrosion is not as much problem as in the packed column

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

 For diameters of less than 3 ft. plate tower require lower fabrication and material costs
than packed tower with regard to height, a plate column is usually shorter than the
equivalent packed column.
From the above consideration plate column is selected as the absorber, because in our
case the diameter of the column is approximately 2.54mter which is less than 3 ft.

5.5 SELECTION OF PLATE TYPE

The principal factors to consider when comparing the performance of bubble-cap, sieve
and valve plates are: cost, capacity, operating range, efficiency and pressure drop.

Cost:
Bubble-cap plates are appreciably more expensive than sieve or valve plates. The
relative cost will depend on the material of construction used; for mild steel the ratios,
Bubble-cap: valve: sieve, are approximately 3.0: 1.5: 1.0.

Capacity:
There is little difference in the capacity rating of the three types (the diameter
of the column required for a given flow-rate); the ranking is sieve, valve, and bubble-cap.

Operating range:
This is the most significant factor. By operating range is meant the
range of vapour and liquid rates over which the plate will operate satisfactorily (the stable
operating range). Some flexibility will always be required in an operating plant to
allow for changes in production rate, and to cover start-up and shut-down conditions. The
ratio of the highest to the lowest flow rates is often referred to as the "turn-down" ratio.
Bubble-cap plates have a positive liquid seal and can therefore operate efficiently at very
low vapour rates.
Sieve plates rely on the flow of vapour through the holes to hold the liquid on the plate, and
cannot operate at very low vapour rates. But, with good design, sieve plates can be designed to
give a satisfactory operating range; typically, from 50 per cent to 120 per

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

cent of design capacity. Valve plates are intended to give greater flexibility than sieve plates at a
lower cost than bubble-caps.

Efficiency:
The Murphree efficiency of the three types of plate will be virtually the
same when operating over their design flow range, and no real distinction can be made
between them

Pressure drop:
The pressure drop over the plates can be an important design consideration, particularly for
vacuum columns. The plate pressure drop will depend on the detailed design of the plate but, in
general, sieve plates give the lowest pressure drop,
followed by valves, with bubble-caps giving the highest.

STEP 1
5.6 SELECTION OF SOLVENT
An organic solvent, dibutyl phthalate, is preferred because they are chemically stable.Duing
mass transfer in the absorption column small quantities of solvent are lost.and the energy
consumption is low because water evaporation is not required and the production of the by-
product is also low.

The conditions of streams at inlet and outlet of absorber are given in the fig. 1.

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

Figure 1

STEP 2
5.7 CALCULATION OF THE THEORATICAL NO. OF STAGES
Graphical method for determining the equilibrium stages become very time consuming
When more than a few stages are required or the best operating conditions are to be determined.
Under such conditions, an algebraic method is preferred for manual calculations.
The Kremser method is used for single section cascades, as modified by Edmisteris applicable
for absorption and stripping of the dilute mixtures. The fraction of a solute i
absorbed is given by:

AiN+1 -Ai/ AiN+1 -1 =solute fraction absorbed

Where Ai is the solute fraction factor for component i and N is the number of equilibrium stages
required for specified solute fraction absorbed. The absorption factor for low solute
concentration are conveniently defined in terms of L and V entering liquid and vapor flow rates
into the column respectively and Ki, the vapor liquid equilibrium ratio for the solute i as
Ai = L/ KiV

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

Estimating Ki values in either of this equation is the function of temperature, pressure and liquid-
phase composition. For dilute solute mixtures and essentially ambient pressure, value of Ki can be
estimated by the following:

Ki =pis/p
Where
pi s =vapor pressure of the solute
Theoretical no. of stages=9

STEP 3
5.8 COLUMN EFFICIENCY: -
To determine the actual number of stages required for an absorption process, the number of
theoretical stages must be adjusted by a stage efficiency Eo. An empirical relation based on the
observation that overall stage efficiencies depend primarily on the average molar viscosity is
given by:
EO =19.2-57.8logμL
Where
μL = viscosity of the liquid,cp
Nact= actual number of stages
The actual number of stages is

Nact=N/ EO
Actual number of stages =20

STEP 4
5.9 CALCULATION FOR DIAMETER
For diameter 1st we will calculate the flooding velocity by the following formula;

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

Where:
uf = flooding vapour velocity, rn/s, based on the net column cross-sectional area
An

K1 = constant
рL= density of liquid kg/m3
рv= density of the liquid kg/m3
Flooding velocity =0.36 m/s
The liquid-vapour flow factor FLV in Fig. b from app. is given by:

Where
Lw = liquid mass flow-rate, kg/s,
Vw = vapour mass flow-rate, kg/s.
Actual velocity (Vn) is 50-90% of the flooding velocity.
here we assume 80% of the flooding velocity
Vn = 0.3 m/s
Now calculate the net column area as following;
An = mv/ Vn
where
mv = vol. flow rate, m3/sec
An = net column area, m2
An =4.33 m2
The actual column area is given by:
Ac = An + Ad
Where
Ac = column area
An = net area

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

Ad = down comer area, 15% of Ac

Ac = An /0.85
D = (4* Ac /3.14)^0.5
D = 2.547 m

STEP 5
5.10 HEIGHT OF THE COLUMN
The height of the column is given by:
Hc = (Nact – 1)*Hs + DH
Where
Hc = height of the column
Nact = actual no. of stages
Hs =plate spacing, 0.6 m
DH = plate thickness (0.005 m) +upper n lower space (1.2m)
Hc = 7.805 m

STEP 6
5.11 PLATE SPECIFICATIONS
Column diameter, Dc =2.54 m
Column area, Ac = 5.09m2
Down Comer area, Ad = .15*Ac = 0.7635m2 i.e. 15% of column area
Net area, An = 4.33 m2
Active area, Aa = Ac – 2*Ad = 3.563 m2
Hole area, Ah = .10*Aa =.3563 m2
Weir (Ad/Ac) 100 = 15
AT Lw/Dc = .81 LW=2.08 m
The value of LW is taken from ref.1.
Suppose
Weir height hw = 50mm
Hole Size = 5mm

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

Plate thickness St = 5 mm
Θ = 92o
Angle Subtended at plate edge strip by unperforated edge strip=88o
Mean length, unperforated strip = (Dc-hw)*3.14*(θ/180)
=3.82m
Area of unperforated strip = hw*Mean length
= .1912 m2
Mean length of calming zone = Weir length + Width of unperforated strip
=2.13 m
Area of calming zone = 2*(Mean length*hw)
= .3824 m2
Total area of perforation Ap = Aa – (Mean length of calming zone)
= 3.1806 m2
Number of holes = Ah/area of one hole
Area of one hole = 1.964*10-5m2
Number of holes = 18141

STEP 7
5.12 PRESSURE DROP
Dry plate pressure drop
Max vapour velocity through hole u’h = Vol. flow rate of vapour/area of hole
= 10.945 m/sec
For plate thickness/hole dia = 1
Co = .84
The value of Co is taken from Fig. of app.
Where
Co=Orifice Coefficient

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

hd = 6.1846 mm liquid
Where:

hd=Height of the head

hr=35.71mm liquid

how=36.45mm liquid

ht=128.34 mm liquid
ht=0.156psi/tray
hap = hw-10
=40mm

Aap =0.0832m2
Where:
hap=height of the bottom edge
hw=weir height
how=weir crest
ht=total pressure

5.13 WEEP POINT

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

K2 = constant
Uh=4.95m/s
The value of K2 is taken from Fig. f of app.
Actual min vapour velocity is less than the operating velocity, So there is no weeping.

SPECIFICATION SHEET

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

Identification:
Item Absorption Tower
Item No. T-101
No. required 1 Tray type (Sieve tray)
Function: Absorption of MAN by DBP (dibutyl phthalate) from
reaction residues.
Operation: Continuous.
Feed Temperature: 100 oC
Vapor Temperature: 59 oC
Liquid Temperature: 60 oC
Design Data:

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Chapter 5 DESIGN OF ABSORPTION TOWER

Pressure = 101.325 KPa Weir height = 50 mm

Height of column = 8 m Weir length = 2 m
Diameter of column = 2.5 m Active area = 0.3m
Hole size = 5 mm Tray spacing = 0.6 m
Pressure drop per tray = 1.07 KPa Flooding = 80 %
Tray thickness = 5 mm
Active holes = 18141

REFERENCES
1. Coulson & Richardson, “Chemical Engineering “volume # 6th, R.K.Sinnott.
2. Max S.Peter Hous D. Timmerhous Ronald. West, “Plant Design & Economics for
Chemical Engineers”, Ed # 5th.
3. Stanley M.Walas, “Chemical Process Equipment, Selection & Design”, Butterworth-
Heiaemamm Series in Chemical Engineer.
4. Carl Branan, “Rule of thumb for Chemical Engineer”, Edition 3rd.
5. Warren L. McCabe, Julian C. Smith, Peter Harriott, “Unit Operation of Chemical
Engineering”, Edition 5th, McGraw-Hill, Inc.

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